01 – Common sense is not so common.
A very happy new year. This is the first newsletter of 2020.
As mentioned in the last newsletter, Pakistani tech startups had a record 2019, where investors poured $36 million into 14 Pakistani tech startups across 15 deals.
But the question is, did the $36 million make it to Pakistan?
The short answer is NO.
Here’s the long answer.
02 – News and Views
💻 Pakistani on a $1 billion mission to revamp e-commerce (The Express Tribune)
Kashif Ali a.k.a as Sunny Ali of Extreme Commerce talks about his vision of bringing $1 billion into the Pakistani economy by training 10,000 individuals to sell through Amazon FBA.
🧳 A month in Pakistan: An altercation at the ministry of finance (Terra Nova)
Burton Flynn and Ivan Nechunaev, managing partner and investment advisor at Terra Nova Capital respectively, talk about their journey to invest and do business in Pakistan. Did you know that the finance minister of Pakistan takes 2-hour afternoon naps in his office?
📈 Pakistan: The next big Asian market for tech startups? (DW)
“Pakistan’s young and tech-savvy population, market of over 220 million people and increasing levels of local capital are creating opportunities for tech entrepreneurs.”
🚗 Tech guru who designed a ride-hailing app rides a path to success (The Express Tribune)
The story of Atif Azim, co-founder of VentureDive and the brain behind the design of the Careem app.
🚨 An app to rent a car by the hour (Dawn)
A write-up on Roamer, the newest in the line of mobility startups that allows anyone to rent a car by the hour with a chauffeur.
🤝 Easypaisa collaborates with Airlift technologies for digital payments (BR)Pakistan’s leading digital payments platform partners with Pakistan’s favorite commuter vanpool service for quick, easy and cashless payments.
⚰️ Lights out at Sukoon (Dawn)
Postmortem of Sukoon, the Nest I/O startup and the much-hyped TaskRabbit of Pakistan.
💵 Pakistan’s Bykea expands further into payments, launches Bykea Cash (MENAbytes)
Bykea, the bike-based on-demand ride-hailing and logistics startup, expands its services and launches Bykea Cash allowing customers to pay their utility bills.
I try my best to keep track of all that is happening in the ecosystem. In case I missed something important and interesting, I would appreciate it if you can email me.
03 – Funding
💊 Pakistan’s InstaCare raises $140,000 for its digital healthcare platform (MENAbytes)
InstaCare, a Lahore-based health tech startup, raised seed funding from Khaleef Technologies.
🚘 Pakistani startup secures seed funding to put digital advertising on ridesharing vehicles (Mashable)Screen-IT, a Lahore-based Ad tech startup, raised $250K from Coeus Solutions.
I try my best to keep track of all the “amount disclosed” funding announcements. In case I missed something important and interesting, I would appreciate it if you can email me.
04 – Events
Pakistan Tech Summit 2020 – Silicon Valley (Link)
What: An invite-only event organized by Ejad Labs to showcase 50+ entrepreneurs, technology experts, and leaders visiting from Pakistan.
When: February 15, 2020.
Where: San Mateo, California (Draper University)
How:Apply for an invite
Organizer:Ejad Labs
I will be attending. If you are there, let’s connect.
