2021 was a monumental year for the Pakistani startup ecosystem. A large number of startups raised multiple rounds in the year including the likes of Bazaar, Abhi, TAG, and many more helping the ecosystem raise 450 per cent more than 2020.

Looking back at the past few years, 2018 was disappointing for the Pakistani ecosystem, with only seven startups managing to raise $5.7 million, the Pakistani startup ecosystem bounced back in 2019 and has not looked back since. However, in 2019, 14 startups, including Airlift, Tello Talk, Cheetay, Bykea, Eat Mubarak, and many more, managed to raise only $47 million.

In 2020, Pakistani startups including Trella, Jugnu, Walee, OPay, and many others closed $57.7 million across 41 deals. By the end of Q4 2020, this number reached $65M.

From 2015 up till 2021, the total amount raised by Pakistani startups across 255 deals reached $563.5 million, as reported by Invest2Innovate. 61% of this amount has been raised in the past year alone.

Finally, in 2021, insights shared by Invest2Innovate claim Pakistani Startups raised $19.26 million in 13 deals during Q1 and $81.73 million in 18 deals in Q2. Up until Q3, Pakistani startups raised $173 million across 17 deals, for a total of $273.9 million across 48 deals. By the end of the year, Pakistani startups raised $350 million across 81 deals, with $69 million raised across 22 deals.

Kalsoom Lakhani, General Partner i2i Ventures, shared important insights into funding raised by Pakistani startups in 2021 on Twitter. The highest performing sectors of the year were noted to be e-commerce, fintech, and logistics.

The final amount raised by the end of the year 2021 by Pakistani startups was $365.87 million as reported by DAWN. Here’s a breakdown of the startups that raised the highest funds in 2021 with data from i2i’s Deal Flow Tracker and Techshaw Pulse:

Source: Pro Pakistani