The International Finance Corporation (IFC) will be investing $2.5 million in Sarmayacar tech-driven startups in Pakistan to help boost entrepreneurship and prompt economic growth.
The ultimate target through this initiative is the corporation supports startups that provide innovative solutions to development problems and create quality jobs.
Of the total International Finance Corporation (IFC) fund, $2 million is equity commitments from Startup Catalyst, the body’s global programme to support seed funds and accelerators that include investments, mentorship and connections in emerging markets.
The remaining $500,000 is from the Women Entrepreneurship Finance Initiative (We-Fi), a partnership among governments, multilateral development banks and other public and private sector stakeholders hosted by the World Bank Group.
Rabeel Warraich, Founder of Sarmayacar stated that “IFC’s goal at Sarmayacar was to provide value-add early-stage funding to entrepreneurs who are building scalable, market-transforming consumer and enterprise technology businesses in Pakistan.”
Rabeel quoted, “This marks the first such investment from the World Bank Group in Pakistan and will enable us to back more startups in the country”
Nadeem Siddiqui, IFC’s Senior Manager for Pakistan and Afghanistan stated that “Our aim is to support these entrepreneurs by helping to bridge issues around insufficient seed capital and strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Pakistan.”