Fintech Dastgyr raises $37m in Series A round for biggest investment yet at this stage in Pakistan.

Dastgyr, a B2B marketplace out of Karachi that connects suppliers to mom-and-pop retailers, on Tuesday announced that it has raised $37 million in Series A funding - the first round of financing for a new business after seed capital - for the biggest investment yet in Pakistan at this stage.

According to a press release, the round was led by VEON Venture - the corporate venture arm of Jazz Pakistan's parent company - with a contribution of $15m. Other participants in the round were Zinal Growth, DEG, Khwarizmi Ventures, OTF Jasoor Ventures, Cedar Mundi, Reflect Ventures, Century Oak Capital, Hi2 Global, GoingVC, Astir Ventures, K3 Diversity Ventures, and Chandaria Capital, along with the founders of Property Finder, Ayoconnect, Quiqup, and senior management from DoorDash.

The new financing comes less than a year after Dastgyr announced its $3.5m seed round, the press release said.

It claimed that Dastgyr has grown 300 per cent since then, adding over 70,000 retailers across five markets and venturing into new categories such as construction and building materials.

"We're thrilled to achieve this milestone in the current global economic environment. While we are proud of our growth, we are even prouder of achieving this growth with high capital efficiency. In today's world, the focus is shifting toward unit economics, burn multiples, and sustainability, but these have been our core focus areas from day one," the press release quoted Dastgyr co-founder Zohaib Ali as saying.

He said that financial inclusion, which is central to the startup's mission, would uplift and enable Pakistan's...