Sameh Elamawy

Sameh Elamawy is a technology entrepreneur and recreational high-stakes poker player best known in business as the co-founder of Scratch, a fintech company focused on modernizing loan servicing. Before launching Scratch, he worked in product roles at Dropbox, Pinterest, and Procter & Gamble, giving him a background that combines consumer technology, finance, and startup development.

Before Scratch, Elamawy founded MoveTogether, a mobile social app designed to help friends organize spontaneous activities. The idea reportedly grew out of his experience while studying at Stanford Business School. He later became active in consumer-finance policy as well, serving on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Consumer Advisory Board.

One of the more distinctive stories behind Scratch is that Elamawy has said a conversation with an Uber driver struggling to keep track of debt payments helped inspire the business. He has also publicly written about borrower-first financial services, arguing for clearer technology, better servicing tools, and stronger alignment between borrowers and lenders.

In poker, Elamawy appears to be a businessman and serious recreational player. He made his High Stakes Poker debut in 2024 and has since become associated with televised high-stakes cash games.