Islamabad: Pakistan startup PostEx, a provider of courier and financing to e-commerce companies, completed one of the country’s largest early-stage funding to help with its expansion plans, Bloomberg reported this week.
The Lahore-based startup raised $8.6 million through multiple tranches in its seed funding, according to its founder Muhammad Omer Khan. The latest tranche was led by Global Founders Capital, and also included first-time investments by FJ Labs and RTP Global in Pakistan.
The startup scene in the world’s fifth-largest nation is having a breakout year. Over $300 million has flowed into Pakistan’s nascent technology sector in 2021, more than in the previous six years combined.
Khan moved back to Pakistan from Dubai to start the venture after discovering more than 90 percent of the country’s online shopping was done with post-delivery cash payments rather than electronic transactions, resulting in the funds of businesses being held up for weeks, Bloomberg said.
PostEx, which began in April, helps e-commerce businesses solve working capital problems by giving them cash before making deliveries and providing them finance to run their businesses.
“The space has been underserved by traditional financial providers. Banks would not loan to e-commerce platforms because they don’t have anything to put as a collateral,” Khan said in an interview with Bloomberg. “We know their business. We understand that they’re growing very fast. So why not just use that as a collateral?”
The company will use the funds to expand into 15 to 20 more cities in Pakistan, increase its workforce and launch more fintech products, he said. Other investors included MSA Capital, VentureSouq, Alma Capital and Zayn Capital.
Pakistan’s e-commerce industry has lured the most investment in the recent funding rush. The majority of the population still hasn’t switched to online shopping, providing room for the sector to grow and transactions to reach $10 billion before 2025 from about $6 billion now, Khan estimates.
The held-up cash “was slowing growth down for e-commerce companies,” Khan told Bloomberg. “We’re trying to build a solution and help them grow.”
Pakistani startup PostEx completes one of the country’s largest early-stage funding
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Pakistani startup PostEx completes one of the country’s largest early-stage funding
- Provider of courier and financing to e-commerce companies raised $8.6 million through multiple tranches in seed funding
- Over $300 million has flowed into Pakistan’s nascent technology sector in 2021, more than in previous six years combined
Turkish agents capture senior Daesh member on Afghanistan-Pakistan border
- The Turkish citizen was allegedly tasked with suicide bombings in Turkiye, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Europe
- It was not clear when the operation took place or whether Afghan and Pakistani authorities were involved
ANKARA: Turkish intelligence agents have captured a senior member of the Daesh (Islamic State) group in an area along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, allegedly thwarting planned suicide attacks in Turkiye and elsewhere, Turkiye’s state-run news agency reported Monday.
Anadolu Agency said the suspect was identified as Mehmet Goren and a member of the group’s Afghanistan-based Daesh-Khorasan (IS-K) branch. He was caught in a covert operation and transferred to Turkiye.
It was not clear when the operation took place or whether Afghan and Pakistani authorities were involved.
The report said the Turkish citizen allegedly rose within the organization’s ranks and was given the task of carrying out suicide bombings in Turkiye, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Europe.
Daesh has carried out deadly attacks in Turkiye, including a shooting at an Istanbul night club on Jan. 1, 2017, which killed 39 people.
Monday’s report said Goren’s capture allegedly also exposed the group’s recruitment methods and provided intelligence on its planned activities.
