Finja just received commercial permission from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for the EMI (Electronic Money Institution) License. Finja was the first fintech to get in-principle clearance for this license from SBP on April 9, 2020.
With the granting of its EMI license, Finja becomes the country’s first fintech with several regulatory licenses, allowing it to grow its consumer-facing brand, the Finja App.
Finja is devoted to its mission of expanding Pakistan’s technology ecosystems by offering access to digital payments and EMoney Wallet-based solutions via open APIs, therefore helping the increasing start-up industry.
Finja’s technology has logged over $1.7 billion (PKR 230 billion) in transactional volume since its start, with assets under control increasing by more than 200 percent since 2020.
With an NBFC (Non-Banking Finance Corporation) license from the SECP and an EMI from the SBP, Finja has become the first non-banking unit in Pakistan to possess a framework that can solicit customer deposits, connect to the country’s payment plumbing, authenticate and onboard newcomers, and facilitate digital credit solutions to small and medium businesses and the individuals they serve.
Since the epidemic began in April of last year, Finja has increased its digital lending portfolio by 640 percent, disbursing over 50,000 loans to over 10,000 small companies across the nation. Finja’s slogan, “Humain Hai Apki Kamyabi Pay Yakeen,” represents the company’s dedication to improving local companies and the people who work for them.
“Finja occupies a unique position in the value chain to partner and collaborates with commercial and microfinance banks, upcoming DFIs (Digital Financial Institutions), EMIs, FMCGs, distributors, merchants, and other cross-industry incumbents to provide payment solutions and digital credit in line with the evolving needs of SMEs and the professional sector,” said Qasif Shahid (CEO & Co-founder, Finja).
Finja was created in 2016 by Qasif Shahid, Monis Rahman, and Umer Munawar and is supported by top worldwide venture capital firms such as Vostok Emerging Finance, BeeNext, Quona Capital, Gray MacKenzie, ICU Ventures, and HBL.
