Comment by Riaz Haq 11 hours ago

Pakistan’s fintech bet pays off in a new era for South Asian finance
From India's shadow to emerging regional leader, country's funding rebounds, crypto frameworks develop


https://tribune.com.pk/story/2580132/pakistans-fintech-bet-pays-off...


"Pakistan is undoubtedly a rising star in digital assets, even if this is still a “honeymoon phase” for the South Asian country in a notoriously volatile fintech segment. How Pakistan responds to its first major crypto shock will ultimately reveal the depth of its commitment."
This is what Forbes has reported on Pakistan’s current fintech landscape. Fintech’s centre of gravity in South Asia may finally be shifting, and Pakistan is emerging as the region’s unexpected powerhouse. For years, India’s dominance kept neighbouring fintech ecosystems in its shadow. Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal lagged behind, adopting digital finance slowly and attracting limited investor interest.
Read: Digital transformation shapes Pakistan's banking horizon
Over the past three years, that map has begun to change. Pakistan is accelerating the fastest, supported by regulatory backing, a recovering investment pipeline and early moves in digital assets, a space where regional peers remain cautious.
Funding climbed from US$10.4 million in 2019 to US$150m in 2022 before global macroeconomic pressures derailed investor confidence. In 2023, rising interest rates and a global retreat from high-growth tech pushed investment down to US$12.5m.
The rebound has been strong. Funding doubled to US$26.3m in 2024 and reached US$52.5m in the first half of 2025. By late November, Pakistan’s fintech ecosystem had secured US$391m in total venture capital and included close to 450 companies.
The standout deal of 2025 was Haball’s US$52m pre-Series A round. Meezan Bank, the country’s largest Islamic lender, provided US$47m, a sign that traditional banks are no longer resisting digital entrants and are instead choosing to collaborate with them.


Regulation has evolved alongside investment. The Pakistan Startup Fund is offering equity-free grants to attract venture capital, while the State Bank has introduced a full digital bank licensing framework. Five digital banks, including Easypaisa and Mashreq Bank, began pilot operations in early 2025. These measures aim to lift adult financial inclusion from 64% in 2023 to 75% by 2028.
As SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad said in March 2024, “When more people have access to financial services, it creates a broad base of consumers, savers and entrepreneurs… especially in countries like Pakistan where the informal economy remains widespread.” Pakistan is positioning financial inclusion not simply as social welfare but as a way to formalise the economy and support long-term growth.
Pakistan is also moving ahead of its neighbours in digital assets. Bangladesh and Nepal have declared cryptocurrencies illegal, while Pakistan has avoided a complete ban. In earlier years this created a regulatory grey zone, but the situation is now shifting. Work on a formal virtual asset framework has begun, signalling a move from passive tolerance to structured oversight.
Pakistan is emerging as the most assertive fintech player in South Asia. Unlike Bangladesh and Nepal, both of which have outlawed cryptocurrencies, Pakistan avoided a blanket ban and is now moving toward a formal virtual asset framework. The shift from a regulatory grey zone to structured oversight marks a major strategic turn.
Bangladesh and Nepal offer a sharp contrast. In Bangladesh, between 40% and 50% of the population remains unbanked and the government aims for 75% digital transactions by 2027, yet crypto remains banned. Nepal’s fintech market is smaller, with mobile banking penetration at 73% and digital wallets at 64%, and it also maintains a strict prohibition on crypto activity.

Comment by Riaz Haq 11 hours ago

Fintech Heats Up In South Asia Beyond India


https://www.forbes.com/sites/zennonkapron/2025/11/27/fintech-heats-...


Pakistan: The Fintech Sleeper Awakens

Pakistan’s fintech funding surged from just US$10.4 million in 2019 to US$150 million by 2022, seemingly positioning the South Asian country to become one of the top emerging digital finance markets. However, funding plummeted in 2023 to just US$12.5 million as global macroeconomic conditions deteriorated. Surging interest rates increased the cost of capital while investors also became warier of growth-focused tech startups.

Yet funding has recovered in the past two years, roughly doubling to US$26.3 million in 2024 and US$52.5 million through the first half of 2025. As of late November, Pakistan’s 450 fintech companies have in total raised US$391 million in VC money.


The biggest deal of the year so far has been the US$52 million pre-Series A by B2B supply chain and payments fintech Haball that closed in April. The deal is significant not just for its size but also because it represents one of the most notable tie-ups to date between an incumbent Pakistani lender and a digital upstart. Meezan Bank, Pakistan’s largest Islamic bank, provided US$47 million of Haball’s funding. Haball is the first Pakistani fintech to receive a digital invoicing license from the Federal Board of Revenue and is currently working toward becoming a regulated payment initiation service provider with connectivity to Raast, the South Asian country’s instant payment system.

The uptick in Pakistan’s fintech funding dovetails with growing regulatory support for the industry. For instance, the state-backed Pakistan Startup Fund offers equity-free grants to encourage venture capital inflows. Pakistan has also established a licensing and regulatory framework for digital banks, with five entities (including Easypaisa and Mashreq Bank) launching pilot operations by early 2025.


Collectively, these efforts aim to boost adult financial inclusion from the 64% rate in 2023 to 75% by 2028. “When more people have access to financial services, it creates a broad base of consumers, savers, and entrepreneurs and helps stimulate economic growth. This is all the more important in developing economies like Pakistan, where the informal economy has a substantial share in overall economic activity and contributes to the widespread prevalence of informal and unsafe savings and investment avenues,” Jameel Ahmad, Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan, said of the government’s financial inclusion efforts in March 2024.

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