Karandaaz Pakistan
Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit organization that drives financial inclusion in Pakistan via wholesale MSME capital, digital public infrastructure (including co-developing Raast instant payments with the State Bank of Pakistan), risk capital and grants to fintech innovators, and evidence-based research.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersIslamabad, Pakistan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Karandaaz Pakistan does
Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit public company limited by guarantee established in 2014 under Section 42 of the Companies Act, 2017, headquartered in Islamabad. It was seeded with grant funding from the UK Government's Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and receives ongoing grant funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for digital financial services work. The organization operates at the intersection of digital public infrastructure, MSME development, and evidence-based financial inclusion, serving unbanked populations, women, MSMEs, and rural communities across Pakistan.
Its operations span four pillars: Karandaaz Capital provides wholesale structured credit and equity-linked direct growth capital to MSMEs; Karandaaz Digital drives digital public infrastructure including co-development of Raast (Pakistan's instant payment system with the State Bank of Pakistan), the Pakistan Digital Stack, and merchant onboarding programmes; Innovation Investments deploys risk capital and technical assistance through the Financial Inclusion for Women Challenge (FIWC), Women Ventures, Greenfin Innovations, and grant-based challenge rounds; and Karandaaz Research produces the Karandaaz Data Portal and analytical publications on financial inclusion. Notable technology components include ISO 27001-compliant security implementation for the CDNS mobile banking app and the RAAST Rapid Merchant Onboarding programme accelerating Tier 2/3 merchant digitization.
Karandaaz operates an ecosystem-catalyst go-to-market model — it does not sell directly to end customers but rather provides wholesale capital, grants, technical assistance, and convening infrastructure to financial institutions, fintechs, government entities (SECP, FBR, NBP, CDNS, Pakistan Post), and development partners (FCDO, Gates Foundation, UNDP/Better Than Cash Alliance, UN Women). Reported cumulative impact includes PKR 87B+ MSME financing leveraged, PKR 135B+ additional revenue at supported SMEs, PKR 403B DFS transactions catalyzed, 1M+ jobs supported, 850K+ MSMEs supported, and 26M+ DFS beneficiaries added. Strategic programmes include WEDI, FIWC, RMOFE, Khudmukhtar Khatoon (a Shariah-compliant women financing programme), and the National Merchant Payments Working Group.
Karandaaz Pakistan firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Karandaaz Pakistan
- Legal name
- Karandaaz Pakistan
- Website
- https://karandaaz.com.pk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit organization that drives financial inclusion in Pakistan via wholesale MSME capital, digital public infrastructure (including co-developing Raast instant payments with the State Bank of Pakistan), risk capital and grants to fintech innovators, and evidence-based research.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Karandaaz Pakistan industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Development Finance & Financial Inclusion Services
- NAICS
- Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199), Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Private Sector & Blended Finance Arms (IFC-type) (BPADACAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Microfinance, Financial Inclusion & Inclusive Markets (BPAGABAM), SBA/Government-Backed & Development Finance Loans (FSAKAGAI)
Keywords
Where Karandaaz Pakistan is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Islamabad
- HQ country
- Pakistan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Karandaaz Pakistan business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Grant Funding: Karandaaz is a not-for-profit company that operates on grant funding from institutional donors. It was established in 2014 with seed grant funding from UK Government's FCDO. For digital financial services work, grant funding is received from Gates Foundation. SEED programme is grant funded by FCDO while EAGR is co-funded by FCDO and Gates Foundation on a grant basis.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Karandaaz Pakistan product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit organization that deploys grants, wholesale structured credit, and equity-linked investments to micro, small and mid-size enterprises (MSMEs), while catalysing digital financial services adoption through ecosystem development, policy engagement, and research. It operates four pillars—Karandaaz Capital, Karandaaz Digital, Innovation Investments, and Karandaaz Research—targeting financial institutions, fintechs, government entities, and underserved populations (particularly women and rural communities).
Product overview
Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit organization established in 2014 under Section 42 of the Companies Act, 2017, working to advance financial inclusion and inclusive economic growth in Pakistan. Its portfolio consists of four core pillars: Karandaaz Capital (wholesale structured credit and equity investments in MSMEs), Karandaaz Digital (expanding digital financial services through digital public infrastructure, payment systems, and policy), Innovation Investments (risk capital and technical assistance for financial inclusion innovators, including the FIWC challenge, Women Ventures, and Greenfin Innovations), and Karandaaz Research (evidence-based insights and data analytics). Key initiatives include the Women Economic and Digital Inclusion (WEDI) initiative, the FIWC challenge programme, the Raast Merchant Onboarding (RMOFE) programme, the Shariah-compliant Khudmukhtar Khatoon financing programme, and the Karandaaz Data Portal. Karandaaz also co-developed Pakistan's Raast instant payment system with the State Bank of Pakistan and manages multiple innovation challenge rounds (FIWC, KDC, Offline Payments Challenge) to drive financial inclusion outcomes.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Karandaaz Capital Provides wholesale structured credit and equity-linked direct growth capital investments to micro, small and mid-size enterprises (MSMEs) with potential for sustainable growth and employment generation in Pakistan.
- Karandaaz Digital Expands access to digital financial services in Pakistan by working across the ecosystem with stakeholders on digital public infrastructure, payment systems, policy and regulation, innovation seeding, and scale and outreach.
- Innovation Investments Provides risk capital and technical assistance to support innovative solutions aimed at financial inclusion and entrepreneurship, especially in marginalized sectors, including business development support and growth capital for women-led businesses and green ventures.
- Karandaaz Research Develops and disseminates evidence-based insights and solutions to influence markets and the financial ecosystem, supporting Karandaaz's core financial inclusion goal.
- Women Economic and Digital Inclusion (WEDI) Initiative Flagship gender equity initiative bringing together financial institutions, development partners, and policymakers to address gender gaps in economic participation and financial inclusion in Pakistan.
- Financial Inclusion for Women Challenge (FIWC) Grant-based challenge programme providing funding and technical support for innovative financial solutions targeting women's economic participation, with successive rounds addressing different segments and themes.
- Raast Rapid Merchant Onboarding and Facilitation Entities (RMOFE) Programme designed to accelerate digital payment adoption across MSMEs by onboarding merchants onto Pakistan's Raast instant payment system, with a focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 merchants, gender-focused engagement, and inclusivity.
- Khudmukhtar Khatoon Pakistan's first Shariah-compliant digital asset-financing programme for women entrepreneurs, launched in partnership with Walee Financial Services, targeting women-led businesses in apparel, food services, and beauty services sectors.
- Karandaaz Data Portal
Quantifiable outcome
- PKR 87B+ MSME financing leveraged
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Karandaaz Pakistan
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Karandaaz Pakistan technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Karandaaz Pakistan partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Mobilink Microfinance Bank Limited (MMBL)coreFIWC Round 5 field partnership where MMBL will onboard 50,000 women working in agriculture sector via its Dost app, combining financial literacy with free healthcare and savings products. This is part of the Women Economic and Digital Inclusion (WEDI) initiative.
- Manzil OrganizationcoreFIWC Round 5 partnership to empower 9,000 rural women in Balochistan by allotting farmland, agricultural kits, and establishing dedicated community markets in Naseerabad.
- Taleem FinancecoreWomen Ventures partnership targeting growth capital needs of low-cost private schools currently unserved by commercial banks. Initiative aims to expand classroom capacity and upgrade school infrastructure to boost retention for young girls.
- Better Than Cash Alliance (UNDP)coreCollaboration to accelerate digital merchant payments through National Merchant Payments Working Group - a multi-stakeholder platform to drive digital payments acceptance via Raast, particularly for women and small merchants.
- Walee Financial ServicescoreLaunched 'Khudmukhtar Khatoon', Pakistan's first Shariah-compliant digital asset-financing program for women entrepreneurs in sectors like apparel, food services, and beauty services.
- TapsyscoreStrategic partnership to onboard up to 10,000 merchants under Raast Merchant Onboarding & Facilitating Entities programme. Tapsys deploys PayApp platform with smart soundbox technology providing real-time audio transaction confirmation in local languages.
- Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP)coreLEAP initiative advancing SECP's automation and digitization - reviews, re-engineers, and automates more than 250 business processes including company registration, compliance, licensing, supervision, and enforcement.
- Federal Board of Revenue (FBR)coreCollaboration for end-to-end digitalization of tax collection through Pakistan Revenue Automation (PRAL) to improve Tax-to-GDP ratio and increase tax collection through better compliance.
- National Bank of PakistancoreSupported development of digital strategy for payment flows and created open API platform for government transactions integrating major G2P/P2G schemes to improve efficiency and boost mobile wallet adoption.
- Central Directorate of National Savings (CDNS)coreTechnical support to enable wider access to savings accounts through alternate delivery channels focused on excluded populations, especially women and the unbanked. Completed digitization of CDNS services.
- Pakistan PostminorTechnical assistance for digitizing money order service to help Pakistan Post build new business opportunities and improve service penetration.
- State Bank of PakistancoreSupported creation of Raast instant payment system enabling low-cost, interoperable digital transactions across financial service providers including banks, fintechs, and microfinance institutions.
- Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company (PMIC)coreThrough PMIC, supported 850K micro-enterprises and 1,195K jobs as part of financial inclusion ecosystem.
- Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety (MOPASS)coreMoU signed to undertake joint efforts to advance financial inclusion. Karandaaz committed grant to help maximize efficiency and improve beneficiary experience for Pakistan Baitulmal.
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Karandaaz Pakistan competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- International Finance Corporation (IFC): IFC is the World Bank Group's private sector development finance arm and the canonical blended finance vehicle. It invests debt and equity in MSMEs and emerging market financial institutions, making it the closest institutional analogue to Karandaaz's private-sector/blended finance mandate, albeit at vastly larger global scale.
- British International Investment (BII, formerly CDC): BII is the UK's development finance institution, historically funded by FCDO. It invests in financial inclusion, climate, and infrastructure across South Asia and Africa, sharing Karandaaz's donor heritage (FCDO) and direct MSME/inclusion investment thesis at a global portfolio scale.
- FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank): FMO is the Netherlands' DFI providing debt and equity to financial institutions and SMEs in emerging markets. Its blended finance approach to MSME banking, fintech, and climate finance is structurally comparable to Karandaaz's capital and innovation pillars.
Direct peers
- Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company (PMIC): PMIC is a Pakistani wholesale microfinance fund manager that Karandaaz itself supports; the two work together to finance microfinance institutions. PMIC is the most direct domestic peer given shared mission, instruments (wholesale credit to MFIs), and donor overlap with FCDO/Gates.
- Acumen: Acumen is a global impact investor providing patient capital and business development support to enterprises serving low-income communities, particularly via challenge funds and fellowships. Karandaaz's Innovation Investments pillar (FIWC, Women Ventures, Greenfin) closely mirrors Acumen's model of risk capital plus technical assistance for inclusion-focused entrepreneurs.
- BlueOrchard Finance: BlueOrchard is a leading impact investment manager focused on financial inclusion and microfinance, managing funds that lend to MFIs and fintechs in emerging markets. Its microfinance-focused mandate and fund management model align closely with Karandaaz Capital's wholesale credit activities.
- Accion: Accion is a global non-profit focused on financial inclusion, providing capital, advisory, and policy support to MFIs and fintechs serving the underserved. Its combination of catalytic capital, advisory, and global policy engagement parallels Karandaaz's Capital, Innovation, and Research pillars.
- Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF): PPAF is Pakistan's largest community-driven development organization, providing grants and credit for poverty alleviation across rural and underserved communities. It is a direct domestic peer in financial inclusion and MSME development, with overlapping donor relationships.
- responsAbility Investments: responsAbility is a Swiss impact asset manager investing across financial inclusion, climate, and SME finance in emerging markets. Its fund-based model of investing in microfinance institutions and SMEs is comparable to Karandaaz Capital's wholesale structured credit approach.
- Women's World Banking: Women's World Banking is a global non-profit dedicated to women's financial inclusion, working with financial institutions to design products for low-income women. Karandaaz's WEDI initiative, FIWC, and Women Ventures programmes are direct functional parallels in the women's economic inclusion space.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses1 record
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Karandaaz Pakistan social profiles
Digital presenceKarandaaz Pakistan compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Karandaaz Pakistan financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Karandaaz Pakistan leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Karandaaz Pakistan funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Karandaaz Pakistan M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments3 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Karandaaz Pakistan
What does Karandaaz Pakistan do?
Karandaaz Pakistan is a not-for-profit organization that deploys grants, wholesale structured credit, and equity-linked investments to micro, small and mid-size enterprises (MSMEs), while catalysing digital financial services adoption through ecosystem development, policy engagement, and research. It operates four pillars—Karandaaz Capital, Karandaaz Digital, Innovation Investments, and Karandaaz Research—targeting financial institutions, fintechs, government entities, and underserved populations (particularly women and rural communities).
Is Karandaaz Pakistan a public or private company?
Karandaaz Pakistan is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Karandaaz Pakistan founded?
Karandaaz Pakistan was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Karandaaz Pakistan based?
Karandaaz Pakistan is headquartered in Islamabad, Pakistan, in the Asia region.
How does Karandaaz Pakistan make money?
One revenue line is on record: grant Funding.
Who are Karandaaz Pakistan's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are International Finance Corporation (IFC), British International Investment (BII, formerly CDC) and FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank). Direct peers are Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company (PMIC), Acumen, BlueOrchard Finance, Accion, Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), responsAbility Investments and Women's World Banking.
Does Karandaaz Pakistan have an API?
No public API is recorded for Karandaaz Pakistan.
What industry is Karandaaz Pakistan in?
Karandaaz Pakistan's product category is Development Finance & Financial Inclusion Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPADACAJ, Private Sector & Blended Finance Arms (IFC-type), with a secondary code of BPAGABAM, Microfinance, Financial Inclusion & Inclusive Markets. Its NAICS code is 525 and its SIC code is 6199.