Tech Week in Pakistan (Issue 24: 10th August)
Apologies for the two week delay in the newsletter. Since my last newsletter I have taken the post of Country Manager at Kaymu.pk and with my team will build this Rocket Internet funded venture as Pakistan’s leading eCommerce firm. The weekly newsletter will continue to be published on a weekly basis.
This weekly newsletter focuses on the most important new developments within Pakistan’s Technology Sector. To receive this newsletter on a weekly basis subscribe to our mailing list (no spam ever) or follow me on Twitter @adamdawood. Previous instalments of the newsletter can be found here.
eCommerce across the Sub-Continent
The Economic Times of India had at the end of last month created an infographic on eCommerce across the sub-continent. The infographic focuses primarily on the Pakistani firms given their greater size and impact (did not include Indian startups). The author followed up the infographic by conducting an interview with Shaayan Tahir of HomeShopping.pk and a review of the eCommerce industry.
Homeshopping.pk is currently employing 60 people, with 40 of them being housewives who write content. This year they are expected to launch a home shopping TV channel to cater to the large number of TV viewers in the country. They also forecast their sales to reach $10 million this year.
Infographic | Interview with Shayaan Tahir | eCommerce Review
Daraz.pk Expands into Electronics and Beauty Items
Daraz.pk (funded by Rocket Internet — see disclosure statement below) has expanded their product lines from fashion, accessories and shoes into mobile phones and general household items. They have already partnered with Unilever to make their products available online. A Unilever VP stipulated that the eCommerce industry in Pakistan is expected to grow to PKR 4 billion over the next 5 years, from its current PKR 1.5 billion.
Daraz.pk | Unilever Partnership | ProPakistani
Warid Launches Mobile Paisa
Warid and Bank Alfalah have launched its answer to branchless banking, under the Mobile Paisa brand name. They have started with 10,000 agents across 500 cities and will be offering services such as money transfer, bill payment and a mobile wallet solution.
In other branchless banking news, it seems Telenor’s EasyPaisa, which started in late 2009, had by 2012 completed 100 million transactions with a total $1.4 billion in transaction volume.
ProPakistani | Telenor Results
Other News:
Nielsen finds Consumer Confidence is Higher in Pakistan | Pakistan Today | Nielsen
Pakistan Joins 3D Printing Revolution | Haq’s Musing
Government wants to make a working group to create a strategic plan of implementing an eCommerce gateway | Dawn
Promising Pakistani Startups | Asian Entrepreneur
Pakistan’s MicroFinance banking is better than Bangladesh | Pakistan Today
New Telenor CEO vows to increase innovation | Tribune
The Media in Pakistan | The Diplomat
Askari Bank Launches World MasterCard Credit Card | ProPakistani
PTCL Launches 36Mbps Evo | ProPakistani
Disclosure Statement: I am currently employed as Country Manager of Kaymu.pk, a venture funded by Rocket Internet. All news pertaining to Kaymu, Rocket Internet or any of their investors and holdings are released as and when they are reported in the media.
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