white paper investor roundtable · showcasing the local startup ecosystem and drawing numerous...
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021DISRUPT
Investors’RoundtableCAPITAL VENTURES INTO PAKISTAN
WHITE PAPER 2019
Participants of the Investors’ Roundtable
Raza MatinBrandverse
Chris RogersLumia Capital
Misbah Naqvii2i Ventures
Faizan SiddiqiTCS Holdings
Rabeel WarraichSarmayacar
Shane ShinShorooq Investments
Berhard KlemenSarmayacar
Jonas EichhorstTharros Capital
Roger BayatAngel Investor
Ali SamirTPL Ventures
Imran Aftab10pearls Ventures
Beau SeilPatamar Capital
Meenah TariqPartner at Karavan.vc
Atif AwanIndus Valley Capital
Jehan AraThe Nest I/O
Charlie IllOman Technology Fund
Isfandiyaar ShaheenNetEquity
Faisal AftabLIVC
Sadia ShahidWizdom.ai
Mubariz SiddiquiPaksign
Matthew TabbinerLumia Capital
Abdullah SejaAngel Investor
Haider HilalyItthaca Capital Management
Shoaib Zahid MalikKausar Group of Companies
Jamil GoheerKualitatem
Omar Parvez KhanLIVC
Khurram Zafar47 Ventures
Syed Saquib AliArif Habib Limited
Asad Ja�rii2i Ventures
Kalsoom Lakhanii2i Ventures
Omar ShahCOLABS
Syed NasehDiya Interactive
Naeem ZamindarZamindar Capital
Zeeshan Aftab10Pearls
Taimur Ali KhanTPL e-Ventures
Jawwad Farid (Moderator)Alchemy Technologies
Munib PuriThe Nest I/O
Akash ShaikhThe Nest I/O
Khwaja M. ObaidullahTelenor
Mikaeel Habibi5 Capital
Farhan QureshiGoogle
Hammad OmarInsitor Management
Suleman ManiyaShajar Capital
Rafay GaditGaditek
Ali BawaniSarmayacar
Rizwan DiwanSarmayacar
Jamil Akbarpvt equity Pakistan
Also:
Pakistan has been in the news for all the right reasons.
Our entrepreneurial landscape is being recognised as a
growing space, a breeding ground for incredible ideas, and a
hub of untapped talent and potential. This has been an
outstanding year for startups in terms of the deals which
have been made and the kinds of ideas which have come
about from within the ecosystem.
In the third edition of 021Disrupt, The Nest I/O continued its
practice of holding an Investors’ Roundtable which aims to
allow the community to reconvene every year in an effort to
021DISRUPT
INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE 01
Introduction
recap the year in startups, discuss major events which have
taken place, put forward suggestions for the future and
ultimately, connect with fellow ecosystem stakeholders.
This Whitepaper broadly details the conversations which
took place during 021Disrupt 2019’s Investor Roundtable
between some of the biggest local and international names
within venture capital.
The Nest I/O is a technology incubator and a community hub
launched in partnership with global partners such as Google
for Startups. We provide budding entrepreneurs with space,
infrastructure, facilities, and knowledge sessions as well as
access to a network of mentors and potential investors.
Since its inception in January 2015, The Nest I/O has
graduated 160+ startups over 9 cohorts through our
best-in-class incubation program. At the same time, we have
been involved in various projects and events, ranging from
promoting technology education to facilitating engagement
between the startup community and our corporate partners.
The Nest I/O
021DISRUPT
A B O U T
02INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
021Disrupt is Pakistan’s premier entrepreneurship conference
showcasing the local startup ecosystem and drawing
numerous international guests, ranging from entrepreneurs
and thought-leaders to corporates and venture capitalists.
Once a year, we bring together under one roof an eclectic mix
of speaker sessions, panel discussions, workshops,
roundtables and networking activities featuring participants
from diverse industries and fields from all across the globe. So
whether it’s a panel that offers a window into the minds of
international pioneers or an investor meeting that could alter
the course of your business, 021Disrupt can be your guide
into the future.
021DisruptA B O U T
021DISRUPT
03INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
Key Data Points:
04
N O T E T A K E R :
R U M A I S A M U G H A L
S E N N E N D E S O U Z A
PA R T I C I PA N T S :
4 9
T O T A L D U R A T I O N :
9 0 M I N U T E S
M O D E R A T O R
J A W W A D F A R I D
021DISRUPT
INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
021DISRUPT
05
Availability of Larger Rounds
One of the focal points of the discussion was regarding the steps
which have been taken and the improvements which have been
made within the startup ecosystem since last year’s roundtable.
Last year the main concern was that of sufficiency of capital in the
ecosystem. But just the announcements made at 021Disrupt 19
alone are a testament to the fact that circumstances have
changed. Capital is available, and it is now time for founders to
step up.
Following funding announcements such as that of Airliﬞ, the
amount raised by companies has noticed an incline, especially
Series A rounds which were nearly nonexistent until last year. This
has been indicative of not only the quality of founders and
startups within the ecosystem, but also the fact that they are at
par with startups from around the globe. People are not only
taking notice of Pakistani startups, but are also looking to bet on
their success, with many burgeoning ecosystems recognising the
Pakistani ecosystem as one which is poised to join some of the
biggest markets in the world.
INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
The spike in funding opportunities and amounts has also
helped founders develop a stronger belief that they can
raise larger rounds locally. This has proved to be instrumental
in pushing mature startups to beּמer position themselves to
raise funding. Previously, a frequent complaint would be that
of the dearth of funds but with that being put to rest, the
onus is now on the founders to make sure that they’re
investor ready.
The prime difference from last year is that we can no longer
complain that sufficient capital isn’t available. That being
said, something which does need to be worked on is the
establishment of a beּמer investment structure, more
regulatory relaxations and the support of government bodies
such as SECP, SBP and FBR in an effort to bridge the gap
and bring the entire ecosystem up to speed. The fact
remains that despite the increase in funding opportunities,
we still need more seed and pre-seed investors to enter the
ecosystem. Although this was an obvious gap which was
identified, the general consensus remained that if we are to
see companies graduate from round A to round B, then they
need to be not just investment-worthy but also
investment-ready.
06INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
021DISRUPT
021DISRUPT
Founder Maturity
07INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
In terms of founder maturity, there has been an increase in the
presence of founders with more experience. With the growing
number of incubation programs across the country, there’s a
larger volume of startups and taking note of their profiles, it is
found that the average age of founders has increased as has the
overall quality of deal flow.
That being said, as far as investor readiness goes, there’s still
some room for improvement. Although startups graduating from
incubation and acceleration programs proved to be more
polished, others did not. Investors felt that the due diligence
demands from their end continued to persist while a fraction of
startups remained unprepared when it came to their financials,
projections and roadmaps, all of which is information that forms
the basis for stakeholder involvement.
Despite the presence of incubators and relevant resources, there
seems to be a dearth of support coming in from institutes and
the government and although this alone cannot be the isolated
cause, it does contribute to it. Startups, even those coming in
with a limited amount of experience, need to be informed
enough regarding their models prior to any interactions with
investors.
The way to rectify this lies not just in the hands of institutions and
regulatory bodies but also within those of the entrepreneurial
community at large. Most startups, even the ones which came
across as amateurs, were seen to be coachable by most investors.
The quality of startups and maturity of founders is only set to
increase if we start asking them the right questions and coaching
them on how to be beּמer prepared with the answers to those
questions.
08INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
In terms of founder maturity, there has been an increase in the
presence of founders with more experience. With the growing
number of incubation programs across the country, there’s a
larger volume of startups and taking note of their profiles, it is
found that the average age of founders has increased as has the
overall quality of deal flow.
That being said, as far as investor readiness goes, there’s still
some room for improvement. Although startups graduating from
incubation and acceleration programs proved to be more
polished, others did not. Investors felt that the due diligence
demands from their end continued to persist while a fraction of
startups remained unprepared when it came to their financials,
projections and roadmaps, all of which is information that forms
the basis for stakeholder involvement.
Despite the presence of incubators and relevant resources, there
seems to be a dearth of support coming in from institutes and
the government and although this alone cannot be the isolated
cause, it does contribute to it. Startups, even those coming in
with a limited amount of experience, need to be informed
enough regarding their models prior to any interactions with
investors.
021DISRUPT
The way to rectify this lies not just in the hands of institutions and
regulatory bodies but also within those of the entrepreneurial
community at large. Most startups, even the ones which came
across as amateurs, were seen to be coachable by most investors.
The quality of startups and maturity of founders is only set to
increase if we start asking them the right questions and coaching
them on how to be beּמer prepared with the answers to those
questions.
021DISRUPT
Formation of Association
09INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
We’ve made plenty of strides. By developing a more structured
approach to investments, with the presence of more roundtables
and forums for discussions as well as interaction and dialogue
with and between regulatory bodies has all added to the
progress we continue to make.
One significant development which has taken place is the
establishment of the Venture Capital Association of Pakistan
(VCAP) as announced by Rabeel Warraich, Founder and
Managing Director of Sarmayacar, at 021Disrupt 2019. This
association aims to not just fuel the investment landscape of
Pakistan but to provide stakeholders with a common forum
where they can discuss the state of affairs, exchange ideas and
chart a way forward.
As stated by Dr. Bernhard Klemens “A lot has happened in the
last year. It is on us to share these practices with each other and
learn from our mistakes.” This association will allow for a more
structured approach to the sharing of ideas and best practices as
opposed to the more scaּמered platforms that currently exist. He
continues by saying “Just last year we spoke about adding more
structure and Rabeel’s announcement was right on track.”
021DISRUPT
10INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE
The way to rectify this lies not just in the hands of institutions and
regulatory bodies but also within those of the entrepreneurial
community at large. Most startups, even the ones which came
across as amateurs, were seen to be coachable by most investors.
The quality of startups and maturity of founders is only set to
increase if we start asking them the right questions and coaching
them on how to be beּמer prepared with the answers to those
questions.
INVESTORS’ ROUNDTABLE | WHITE PAPER 2019
organised by021DISRUPT
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