SadaPay a Pakistani FinTech start-up raises $7.2 million

By Leandra Monteiro

SadaPay, a Pakistani FinTech start up, has announced raising $7.2 million in a seed round, totalling its funding to $9.3 million since its inception in 2019. The Islamabad-based FinTech SadaPay funding round comes on the heels of accelerating consumer demand for SadaPay, whose waitlist is now crossing 200,000 registrations.

Recharge Capital led the round with participation from existing investor Kingsway Capital, Raptor Group, and other FinTech angels. According to the firm it brings total funding to $9.3 million. Earlier in the beginning of the year, the company launched its digital wallet and numberless debit card in its pilot phase under the supervision of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

SadaPay now plans to take advantage of the nearly one million smartphones coming online in Pakistan every month through its mobile app that allows users to sign up for a wallet account in under two minutes and immediately start using a SadaPay Virtual Mastercard. As SadaPay is directly connected to Pakistan’s National Database & Registration Authority (NADRA), the company say it can instantly verify any Pakistani’s identity from anywhere in the world – including the 15 million Pakistani expatriates living abroad.

According to media reports, SadaPay’s CEO and founder, Brandon Timinsky said, “Pakistan has a refreshingly progressive regulator, a burgeoning unbanked middle class, widespread smartphone adoption, and over 70 per cent of the population is under the age of 35. We believe that a combination of factors makes Pakistan one of the best places for emerging fintech in the world and we are excited to be a leader in that ecosystem.”

SBP is validating its own framework for a digital bank license, which SadaPay aims to adopt soon. “Working with such forward-thinking regulators at the State Bank of Pakistan and collaborating with the Payment Systems Department has been a phenomenal experience,” Brandon shared.