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Pakistan Startup News and Updates

Health-tech startup Medznmore raises $11.5m in pre-Series A funding
Mutaher Khan Published May 12, 2022

MEDZnMORE has raised $11.5 million in pre-Series A funding round, making it the biggest such deal for any health-tech startup in Pakistan, it emerged on Thursday.

The deal is backed by Integra Partners, Nunc Gestion, Sturgeon Capital and Alta Semper. Other investors include AlTouq Group, ACE & Company, Key Family Partners, Reflect Ventures, Atlas Asset Management and a few angel investors.

The startup was founded in late 2020 by Asad Khan, Saad Khawar and Babar Lakhani, and raised $2.6m in September that year.

Currently, they are catering to both business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) channels through TezMedz and Tabiyat.pk, respectively.

According to a press statement released by the company, over 40 per cent of all dispensed medicines in Pakistan are either spurious or have lost efficacy. MEDZnMORE is trying to solve this problem by improving the availability and ease-of-access to authentic medicines.

The company partners with pharmaceuticals and their authorised distributors across Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad — where it runs its warehouses — to deliver genuine products to both patients and retail pharmacies, it said.

The startup claims to be growing around 42pc month-on-month since the past 12 months and now delivers over 100,000 products every day from its seven cold-chain enabled warehouses located across Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.

Sturgeon Capital Chief Investment Officer Kiyan Zandiyeh noted that the MEDZnMORE team had demonstrated in a short time "a level of focus and quality of execution that has led to tremendous traction".

"This combined with a clear vision of the product roadmap led us to believe that the company will be a category leader in the pharmaceutical market not only in Pakistan but the broader region. We’re proud to be invested in the company and excited for the journey ahead," Zandiyeh said.

The company's chief executive officer, Asad Khan, said that their aim was to make health and wellness products available across all corners of the country.

"In a market of over 220m people, where public healthcare spending is only 1.2pc of the gross domestic product, and where 55pc of all healthcare spending is out-of-pocket, people generally rely on medicines to alleviate their suffering, rather than spend on prohibitively expensive medical procedures," Khan said, adding that ensuring the accessibility of affordable and authentic medicines was essential.

Jinesh Patel, managing partner at Integra Partners, said: "Being an ESG (environmental, social and governance) investor, we found MEDZnMORE to share the same ideology of sustainability and social impact."

Patel said that the startup was solving some of the most pressing problems within the healthcare sector and had shown tremendous traction in a short amount of time.

"We are excited to be backing the star team and are looking forward to being part of their journey as they reshape the Pakistani healthcare landscape," Patel added.

 
Zindigi by JS Bank Presents Future Fest 2022: Pakistan’s Biggest Tech Conference & Expo
Published May 13, 2022

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Dedicated to using technology to pave the way for the future of Pakistan, Zindigi Future Fest is a 3-day tech festival and expo.

The mega event is bringing together the best of Pakistan’s tech startups, investors, tech professionals, innovators, policymakers, and public and private sector visionaries, combined with performances from top Pakistani artists, scrumptious food, and fun activities.

Presented by Zindigi by JS Bank, the Future Fest 2022 is scheduled to take place on the 13th, 14th, and 15th of May.

This event will be home to 50,000+ attendees, 300+ world-class speakers, 100+ exhibitors, 20+ activities all wrapped up in 4 mega conferences covering 40 industry verticals.

The event is hosting 50+ international guests including the world’s top investors and entrepreneurs, and is sponsored by some of the world’s leading companies for the first time in Pakistan.

These companies include Binance, Epic Games, KuCoin, and more than 200 partners/sponsors including Zindigi by JS Bank, Quixel, Bookme.pk, Lakson Venture Capital, Mobilink Microfinance Bank Limited, Google Developers, Payoneer, Careem, Swvl, S&P Global, and McDonald’s, to name a few.


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For the first time ever, this event will have a food festival, portable amusement park, tourism center, futuristic experiences as well as networking opportunities to learn from and connect with the country’s top thought leaders and international guests.

The event will be graced by the President of Pakistan, Dr. Arif Alvi, as the Chief Guest. Future Fest features the biggest lineup of top-tier artists in any event including SomeWhatSuper, Khumariyan, Abdullah Qureshi, Bayaan, Aima Baig, Asim Azhar, Raamis, Hasan Raheem, Young Stunners, and Daniyal Zafar.

Future Fest will be housing 4 conferences simultaneously – Pakistan Ecommerce; Pakistan Developer Conference, presented by Quixel; Startup Grind Pakistan Conference and Freelance Fest 2022.

The first edition of the Pakistan Developer Conference aims to celebrate the thriving software community of Pakistan. The 1st edition of Pakistan Ecommerce Conference is a celebration of the immense talent that exists in Pakistan, from trailblazing startups and entrepreneurs to tech gurus, industry experts and thought leaders.

The 2nd edition of Startup Grind Pakistan conference will also be a part of Future Fest 2022. Startup Grind is the world’s largest community of startups, founders, innovators, and creators. This conference will celebrate the wins of Pakistan’s startup ecosystem and explore the opportunities that are yet to come.

2021 has been an extraordinary year for startups and technology for Pakistan, with startups raising over $350 million in investment. Freelance Fest 2022 is hosting PAFLA, Pakistan’s first showcasing of freelancers.

Don’t miss a chance to listen to how top-tier freelancers have been successful, how they do it, and how you can do it too.

Play your part in shaping the future of tech innovation and entrepreneurship in Pakistan. Don’t miss out on participating in this one-of-a-kind gathering of like-minded individuals, visionaries, and trailblazers.

Join the event on the 13th, 14th, and 15th of May at Fatima Jinnah Park, F-9 Islamabad. Register today at www.futurefest.pk.


 
How tech startups can help boost Pakistan’s economy

11 May 2022


The initiative can help create job opportunities in the country at a rate of more than 25%. This would in turn increase the GDP and GNP of the country.

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One of the quickest ways to achieve economic stability in the country is to enhance the tech startups in the country. Pakistan has a lot of potential in terms of human capacity and innovative ideas, but unfortunately due to a lack of resources and capital, the country experiences a brain drain. The great minds of the country are then attracted by foreign companies and investors, hence the country is then left behind with fewer innovative minds.

The initiative of tech startups is one of the best and yet fastest ways to enhance the country’s economy and progressively contribute to its GDP and GNP. Moreover, India has already built almost 100 unicorns in a decade which is contributing significantly to its economy with over $300 billion. This makes it around 50% of Pakistan’s GDP.


However, Pakistan still lacks progress in the domains of technology and e-commerce as less attention is paid to this and conventional business tactics are employed for economic progression only.

Moreover, the issues like absence of rule of law, lack of tax regulation, inefficient corporate governance, and capital flows are the driving factors for the lack of globalization and modernization in technology and e-commerce domains.

Advantages of tech unicorns in the country

Furthermore, skilled training should be prioritized instead of basic mainstream education to produce a significant number of trained IT experts who can cater to the technological demands of contemporary times.

Additionally, Pakistani tech startups have started to grow gradually in the past few years and the country has an output of 20,000 graduates each year trained in the field of IT and e-commerce. Likewise, many tech start-ups are successfully running in the country and are contributing to the GDP and GNP of Pakistan.

Careem, Uber, Eatoye, Foodpanda, and Patari are a few examples of tech unicorns running in the country helping to enhance the tech industry’s standards. Moreover, Zameen.com was founded in 2006. This app largely guides customers regarding investing, buying, selling, or renting any property.

Likewise, the initiative can help create job opportunities in the country at a rate of more than 25%. This would in turn increase the GDP and GNP of the country as the unemployment rate was expected to rise by about 6.65 million between 2020 and 2021.

The initiatives of tech startups largely helped the country improve its economy through employment and job opportunities. Additionally, the tech unicorns would also be beneficial in the growth of the tech industry’s standards and decrease dependency on foreign products and goods.

 

Longest Sixes in PSL History: Vs Fastest Bowlers​

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Introduction:​


In the world of cricket, cricket fans are more entertained by towering sixes, that's why ICC introduced short format cricket. Ever since the introduction of short format cricket, there has been an increase in cricket fans. Pakistan Super League is also played in T20 format. In this article,the details will be given about the long and high sixes hit by the batsmen in PSL.

Andre Fletcher | 114M​

Andre Fletcher hit the longest six in PSL history during the 3rd season of the league. The Caribbean batsman was representing Peshawar Zalmi and hit the ball an incredible 114 meters off the bowling of Multan Sultan's Mohammad Irfan.


Tom Kohler-Cadmore | 108M​

Tom Kohler-Cadmore's 112-meter six against Quetta Gladiators in PSL 2022 is the second-longest six in PSL history. It was a mammoth hit that the ball landed just inside the National Stadium, Karachi. Tom Kohler-Cadmore is known for his explosive batting style and is a vital cog in the Peshawar Zalmi lineup.

Longest Sixes in PSL History: Vs Fastest Bowlers
 
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