Zaraye, a Karachi-based Business – to – business raw materials marketplace, has raised $2.1 million in a pre-seed round led by Tiger Global and Zayn Capital.
+92 Ventures, Alan Rutledge, Jack Rizvi, and current and former Careem employees in important roles are among the other investors. Tiger Global is making its first pre-seed investment in Pakistan.
Zaraye, which was founded in late 2021, assists manufacturing companies in obtaining raw materials and financing operating capital. With over 300 partners and suppliers scattered across 20+ locations, it now serves clients in the textile and construction sectors.
With a $35 billion raw material market, Pakistan’s industrial manufacturing industry provides 20% of the country’s GDP, with raw materials contributing 60-65% of overall expenses for manufacturers. When net margins are narrow, developing cost-cutting efficiency is vital for small organizations to get orders and continue operating against local and worldwide competition. Furthermore, SMEs have traditionally found obtaining finance from banking institutions to be a tremendous battle for their firms, forcing them to turn to informal markets with 2.5x surcharges.
