Karandaaz Pakistan — in collaboration with LCE — has announced its FinTech Disrupt Challenge 2016, under which it is hoping to find three small-scale technology startups from Pakistan with potential to increase financial inclusion in the country.
Karandaaz Pakistan said that as many as three winners will receive funding up to PKR 10 Million, which will be tied to implementation and impact related milestones.
Karandaaz Pakistan, a non-profit organization working on financial inclusion in Pakistan, said that competition aims to support young technology driven start-ups to propose and introduce innovative products and services in areas of payments, financing, insurance, savings and investment, infrastructure and cross-process support for Fintech’s.
The objective of competition is to not only financially support such ventures but also foster a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship and create linkages between innovators and the financial eco system.
Eligibility
Applicant eligibility is based on support for:
- Small, new startups based in Pakistan, which have been operating for less than two years
- Have fewer than 20 employees
- Have assets less than PKR 10 Million
- Single founders are not eligible; applicants should be part of a team of founders who complement each other
- Firms which have already raised more than PKR 10 Million are not eligible, but firms with offers of matching investment will be preferred
Important Dates:
- Call for Applications: October 23rd, 2016
- Last Date for Applying: November 11th, 2016
- Notification of shortlisted applicants: November 18th, 2016
- Pitches before panel of judges: November 27th, 2016
The shortlisted start-ups will be invited to present their pitch in a rounds based competition on the day of the Fintech Disrupt Challenge, November 27 in Lahore.
They will have 8-10 minutes to convince a panel of judges from Karandaaz, Pakistan, LCE and the private sector.
The proposals and pitches will be evaluated based on their innovativeness, scalability and financial viability, team strength, market opportunity and business model, existing traction and the social impact.
Apply here: http://www.karandaaz.com.pk/fintech-disrupt-2016
