KARACHI: A local startup connecting overseas Pakistanis with their families through a mobile app plans to set up new facilities in Dubai and other parts of the South Asian region as part of its international outreach plan to facilitate greater number of immigrant families, its founder said on Saturday.
Launched in August, the InstaKin app has been downloaded by Pakistani nationals residing in 86 countries who want to resolve immediate family issues back home.
Several Pakistani startups in recent months have captured the attention of global venture capitalists, attracting over $300 million during the course of this year.
Most recently, an online travel and ticketing platform, Bookme.pk, and a beauty and fashion startup, Bagallery, raised $7.5 million and $4.5 million, respectively, in Series A rounds.
“Our majority customers are based in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, apart from Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain. The Middle East is therefore an important market for our company,” Yasir Shirazi, the founder and chief executive officer of InstaKin, told Arab News.
“Setting up teams in other South Asian countries will also facilitate members of the region’s other diaspora communities working in the Middle East, whether they belong to Sri Lanka or Bangladesh,” he continued. “We already have two offices in Karachi and the United States. The third one will be established in Dubai.”
The InstaKin mobile app offers various services, including delivery of medicines and food, bill payments, legal services and property management. The platform hopes to tap more than 38 million South Asian immigrants, including nearly 10 million overseas Pakistanis.
The Dubai office having a local team would also facilitate financial services through local banks, according to the InstaKin CEO.
“Recently, I was in Dubai where we partnered with telecom companies and signed agreements with two banks whose customers will be able to use our services,” he said.
The startup is facilitating payments through Roshan Digital Accounts, a facility provided by the Pakistani central bank to overseas nationals to open bank accounts.
Shirazi said he was running his operations through a WhatsApp group before launching the mobile app.
“An overwhelming response from overseas Pakistanis compelled us to come up with our own product,” he said.
The app has so far served over 10,000 customers, mostly from the Middle East.
“Overseas Pakistanis, whose parents need any services come to us and we facilitate them through runners. They hire these runners through us,” the top InstaKin official said.
He maintained the launch of the app reduced the dependency of overseas Pakistanis on friends and relatives.
“Our users tell us they just log into the app and hire a rider,” he added. “They don’t need to call friends or relatives to run errands in their country.”
The startup aims to establish itself as a one-stop solution for users across the globe to reduce day-to-day complexities in the lives of about 250 million immigrants in a simple and instant manner.
“We want to be a one-stop shop for Pakistani immigrants in the Middle East such that if they need any services in Pakistan, they can visit the app and get things done,” Shirazi said.
Responding to a question about overseas funding, he said the Y Combinator, an American technology startup accelerator, was one of its major investors.
“Y Combinator is the world’s largest venture fund based out of Silicon Valley and we are actually one of the very few companies in Pakistan which got investment from it,” the InstaKin CEO said.
“We also have other investors mostly from the Silicon Valley,” he said without divulging the exact investment figure.
Startup connecting overseas Pakistanis to families at home plans new office in Dubai
https://arab.news/bab57
Startup connecting overseas Pakistanis to families at home plans new office in Dubai
- InstaKin downloaded by Pakistanis in 86 countries who want to resolve family issues back home
- Majority of its users are Pakistani nationals residing in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates
Islamabad says surge in aircraft orders after India standoff could end IMF reliance
- Pakistani jets came into the limelight after Islamabad claimed to have shot down six Indian aircraft during a standoff in May last year
- Many countries have since stepped up engagement with Pakistan, while others have proposed learning from PAF’s multi-domain capabilities
ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday said Pakistan has witnessed a surge in aircraft orders after a four-day military standoff with India last year and, if materialized, they could end the country’s reliance on the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The statement came hours after a high-level Bangladeshi defense delegation met Pakistan’s Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu to discuss a potential sale of JF-17 Thunder aircraft, a multi-role fighter jointly developed by China and Pakistan that has become the backbone of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) over the past decade.
Fighter jets used by Pakistan came into the limelight after Islamabad claimed to have shot down six Indian aircraft, including French-made Rafale jets, during the military conflict with India in May last year. India acknowledged losses in the aerial combat but did not specify a number.
Many countries have since stepped up defense engagement with Pakistan, while delegations from multiple other nations have proposed learning from Pakistan Air Force’s multi-domain air warfare capabilities that successfully advanced Chinese military technology performs against Western hardware.
“Right now, the number of orders we are receiving after reaching this point is significant because our aircraft have been tested,” Defense Minister Asif told a Pakistan’s Geo News channel.
“We are receiving those orders, and it is possible that after six months we may not even need the IMF.”
Pakistan markets the Chinese co-developed JF-17 as a lower-cost multi-role fighter and has positioned itself as a supplier able to offer aircraft, training and maintenance outside Western supply chains.
“I am saying this to you with full confidence,” Asif continued. “If, after six months, all these orders materialize, we will not need the IMF.”
Pakistan has repeatedly turned to the IMF for financial assistance to stabilize its economy. These loans come with strict conditions including fiscal reforms, subsidy cuts and measures to increase revenue that Pakistan must implement to secure disbursements.
In Sept. 2024, the IMF approved a $7 billion bailout for Pakistan under its Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program and a separate $1.4 billion loan under its climate resilience fund in May 2025, aimed at strengthening the country’s economic and climate resilience.
Pakistan has long been striving to expand defense exports by leveraging its decades of counter-insurgency experience and a domestic industry that produces aircraft, armored vehicles, munitions and other equipment.
The South Asian country reached a deal worth over $4 billion to sell military equipment to the Libyan National Army, Reuters report last month, citing Pakistani officials. The deal, one of Pakistan’s largest-ever weapons sales, included the sale of 16 JF-17 fighter jets and 12 Super Mushak trainer aircraft for basic pilot training.
