US-based fintech major Stripe has backed the recent funding round in Safepay, a Pakistani digital payments startup, which is embarking on its next chaper.
Safepay did not disclose the amount it raised in the funding round but said that it was a seven-figure investment. Other international and local investors also participated in the fundraising.
Founded in 2019 by Ziyad Parekh and Raza Naqvi, Safepay’s vision is to accelerate the adoption of digital payments in Pakistan by targeting a wave of entrepreneurs fuelled by e-commerce.
Six months after having completed acceleration as part of Y Combinator’s Summer 2020 batch, the Pakistani fintech company is now backed by leading names, including Global Founders Capital, HOF Capital, Soma Capital, Mantis Capital, and Fatima Gobi Ventures.
“We feel well-positioned with the right partners backing us to help build on the increasing volume of digital payments in Pakistan as well as work with other Pakistani fintechs to further our vision,” co-founder Ziyad Parekh.
“In particular, initiatives from the State Bank of Pakistan like Raast will lead to an upward trajectory towards digital payments, to which we want to contribute. We want to see the online economy of Pakistan grow and provide merchants the rights tools to achieve this,” he added.
According to Noah Pepper, Stripe’s APAC business lead, “The Safepay team’s solutions will be an important contribution to the future of Pakistan’s economy.”
Safepay will use the funds raised to focus on investing in engineering talent to increase digital payment acceptance in Pakistan beyond credit and debit cards, including mobile wallets and bank accounts.
It also plans to use funds raised to further develop its products, expand its team, and on regulatory compliance.
Last December, Stripe announced that it was launching Stripe Treasury. This gives Stripe’s platform users powerful APIs to embed financial services, enabling their customers to easily send, receive and store funds.
Shopify is partnering with Stripe and Evolve Bank & Trust to build Shopify Balance, the business account designed to help merchants take control of their finances.
Stripe Treasury is a leap forward for Stripe’s platform partners, who can now greatly extend—along a critical dimension—the level of support they provide to their users. – BusinessNews.ph
