Tech and Telecom

US-Based NRD Capital Management to Invest in Pakistan Soon

Atlanta-based private equity firm, NRD Capital Management, has announced to soon partner with Pakistan’s venture capitalists i2i Ventures for early-stage investments in Pakistan, reports Profit.

NRD hinted at plans of setting up operations in Pakistan back in October with an allocation for growth-stage startups.

The latest partnership will provide much-needed strategic support to the private equity fund for better exposure to the growing Pakistani startup ecosystem.

For Pakistan, NRD has plans to make an undisclosed allocation from a $300 million fund. The equity managers were previously seeking to invest in Series-A and Series-B rounds.

In Pakistan, most startups are still in the pre-seed and seed stages. The collaboration is a co-investment opportunity for i2i Ventures and will provide strategic support to the Pakistani startup ecosystem while providing NRD with a gateway into the Pakistani market.

Co-founder and General Partner i2i, Misbah Naqvi, noted the scarcity of capital at the growth stage for Pakistani startups. Naqvi further commented that the partnership with NRD will help add value and strengthen the startup ecosystem and open new opportunities for later-stage funding rounds.

Kalsoom Lakhani, the other powerhouse behind i2i Ventures, expressed i2i’s keenness to partner with NRD Capital and believes that the partnership will be fruitful in helping with the growth and scalability of startups in Pakistan.

Invest2Innovate (i2i) is a Karachi-based early-stage high-growth venture capital fund that has been supporting the startup communities since 2011. The i2i family is made up of local and international mentors, startups, investors, and partners. i2i partners with different incubators and startup competitions to generate ideas to produce success stories in the Pakistani startup ecosystem. The fund also finds and connects with entrepreneurs from all over Pakistan for their annual four-month program, i2i Accelerator.

As of December 2021, Pakistani startups have crossed over $300 million in funding and investments across 61 deals. Of the 61 startups, 13 raised pre-seed rounds, 37 raised seed rounds, whereas only 7 raised pre-Series A or Series A rounds. Bigger investment rounds have not yet been announced by startups, which will increase the amount and the deals.

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