General Partner and Co-Founder at i2i Ventures
Misbah Naqvi
Misbah Naqvi is General Partner and Co-Founder at i2i Ventures, an early-stage founder-friendly venture capital fund investing early-stage technology-enabled startups addressing big problems in Pakistan. i2i Ventures leverages its founders’ experience in the Pakistan startup space, and its sister entity Invest2Innovate’s ongoing startup entrepreneurship support programs and comprehensive ground-breaking research on the market, to take an evidence-based approach in its work, and provide a unique value proposition to its portfolio companies. Misbah has 22+ years of global experience in corporate finance, entrepreneurship, impact investing, fintech and development in Pakistan, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the US. She has worked with Citigroup (in corporate banking), Acumen (an impact investment fund) and Boloro (a global fintech startup). She has been an Advisory Board Member of Invest2Innovate since its inception in 2011. Misbah is also a Board Member at U Microfinance Bank Ltd and a Trustee on the Board of AAS, a non-profit that provides treatment, rehabilitation and aftercare to adults and children suffering from substance abuse and/or addiction.
House of Habib
The name “House of Habib” identifies the business activities of the Mohammedali Habib. A man of vision and exceptional leadership, he was the architect and builder (with his brothers) of the group which included Habib Bank Limited and Habib Insurance Co. Ltd., established in 1941 and 1942 respectively.
Today, the House employs over 10,000 people who provide an array of products and services. Activities range from automobiles to audio media, buildings to banking and computers to chemicals. Managing a network of public (listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchanges) and private companies, the House of Habib has equity and technical collaborations with British, Japanese and Norwegian companies.The tradition of the family could be described as conservative, yet it places great emphasis on decentralized professional management resulting in a progressive and dynamic organization.
Today, the House employs over 10,000 people who provide an array of products and services. Activities range from automobiles to audio media, buildings to banking and computers to chemicals. Managing a network of public (listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchanges) and private companies, the House of Habib has equity and technical collaborations with British, Japanese and Norwegian companies.The tradition of the family could be described as conservative, yet it places great emphasis on decentralized professional management resulting in a progressive and dynamic organization.
CEO Sophia Ahmed
AugMentor
AugMentor, an Angel Investment Fund/syndicate, focussed on Pakistan origin/centered tech startups~ with Social impact (women-centric/gender diversity, financial inclusion, alternative energy/eco friendly, job creation/youth focussed).
FOUNDER & MANAGING PARTNER INDUS VALLEY CAPITAL
Aatif Awan
Aatif Awan is the founder and Managing Partner of Indus Valley Capital, a Pakistan-focused early stage VC fund. He led the first investment round for and serves on the boards of many leading startups from Pakistan, including Airlift, Bazaar, BridgeLinx and Atoms.
Previously, Aatif was VP Growth & International at LinkedIn and built the team that grew the network by half a billion members. Aatif also led the product integrations between LinkedIn and Microsoft after the $26B acquisition.
Investment Professional, Shorooq Partners
Tina Daher
As an Investment Professional with Shorooq Partners, Tina harnesses her passion for creating an impact by working with A+ founders with disruptive tech solutions, shaping tomorrow’s emerging market. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the American University of Beirut, after which she completed her Master’s degree in International Political Economy, Finance Focus, at The London School of Economics and Political Science. Prior to VC, Tina worked in Private Equity and Investment Banking, as well as explored avenues in Law and Insurtech. Tina enjoys practicing yoga, exercising, and exploring new places to recharge.
Founder & CEO, Sarmayacar
Rabeel Warraich
Rabeel Warraich is the Founder of Sarmayacar, a seed fund syndicate dedicated to Pakistani startups. He is currently a vice president at private equity firm GIC Investment Management based in London. He specialized in Economics from University of Oxford and Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has experience of working withMorgan Stanley, Convergent Wealth Advisors etc
Partner, Walled City Co.
Shoaib Zahid Malik
Shoaib Zahid Malik, partner at Walled City Co, an Investment syndicate for seed and early-stage start-ups & entrepreneurs. He is an advisor to numerous businesses & start-ups, he is a serial entrepreneur vested in multiple businesses.
Shoaib represents a 3rd-generation family business in Pakistan, KAUSAR (kausar.com.pk) established in 1951 by his late grandfather. From very humble beginnings to being the leading Agri processors of various edible household FMCG products across Pakistan, the journey of the business is a testament to the mindset on adding value to people’s lives, and true to its core values of simplicity, integrity & respect.
Having served on the boards of public sector companies, chambers of commerce & industry, trade associations, and advisory councils, Shoaib is a speaker on entrepreneurship and family businesses. He is enthusiastic about transforming businesses into institutions that contribute to the well-being of society. An advisor to numerous businesses & start-ups, he is a serial entrepreneur vested in multiple businesses.
PARTNER AT WALLED CITY CO & GROUNDUP | DIRECTOR & OWNER AT MAHMOOD GROUP | CEO AT MG APPAREL Linkedin
Anees Khawaja
Anees Khawaja is the Director and Owner at Mahmood Group. With a profound experience in managing strategic decisions of his family owned business, Anees have successfully helped the business evolve by focusing on innovation and digitalization.
Mahmood Group of Industries is one of the top 10 largest exporters of Pakistan. They have expanded and diversified businesses from vertically integrated textile and leather to food, power, real estate, and trading. The vision of creating sustainability has led the company to operate at 7 MW solar power as a group.
Being an active member at Walled City Co & GroupUp, Anees have had the pleasure to invest in start-ups and to support and help entrepreneurs flourish to their full potential. His expertise as a Director lies in waste management, insurance, real estate, and health sectors as well. He is driven by the need to continuously learn and evolve and do good for the world around. He aims to work for education, sustainability, women empowerment, health, clean water, and food waste management. He serves as a Chief Executive Officer at MG Apparel which has recently launched itself. It aspires to become an environment-conscious apparel conglomerate that gives back to the world by empowering its own people.
Anees completed an Entrepreneurial Strategy course from Harvard Business School and did his MBA from Bahauddin Zakariya University. He is an adventurous soul who loves to travel and spend quality time with his family.
General Partner at SOSV | Managing Director at Chinaccelerator | Managing Director at MOX
William Bao Bean
William is a General Partner at SOSV – The Accelerator VC – the second most active venture capital investor in the world (Pitchbook, 3Q21) with US$1.1bn assets under management. At SOSV, he is the Managing Director of Chinaccelerator, the first accelerator program in Asia and the only active program in Asia to have a unicorn come through its program – Bitmex Fall 2015.
SOSV is a multi-stage venture capital investor. It provides intellectual and financial capital to accelerate founders’ big ideas for positive change and has funded over 1000 startups to date. Currently, they fund over 150 startups per year through programs.
He is also Founder and Managing Director of MOX providing startups with free user acquisition helping the portfolio scale to 93m monthly active users. Prior to that William was a Partner at Softbank China & India Holdings, a VC backed by Softbank and Cisco, leading investments in China and South East Asia. William started his career in equity research most recently with Deutsche Bank where he was a top ranked analyst for Asia Internet and China Tech, Media and Telecom and worked on IPOs for Alibaba, Kingsoft, eLong (Expedia China), OnMobile, Rediff and Naukri.
He currently sits on the board of directors for Phable, Scantrust, Mobi Garage, Fleksy, Pandabus, Goama, Boost Capital, italki, and SRT and organizations including Music Matters, Techyizu, US China Strong and Blair Academy. He holds a BA from Bowdoin College.
Co-Founder at Zayn Capital
Faisal Aftab
Faisal is a Co-Founder of Zayn Capital. He is the Managing Partner of Zayn Capital Frontier Fund, a venture capital fund with a primary focus on seed and growth stage ventures in Pakistan.
It is an investment firm providing debt and equity financing to start-ups. There are two early stage funds: Zayn Capital FinTech Fund and Zayn Capital Frontier Fund. Adding to its profile, Zayn Capital also has Advisory Services and an Endowment.
Faisal has made some notable investment calls in Pakistan include some of the top names in the regional startup ecosystem: GrocerApp, Bazaar, Tazah, KTrade, Truck It In, Savyour, Bookme.pk, PostEX, Roomy.pk, Bagallery.com, Trellis Housing Finance, MandiExpress.pk and KnowledgePlatform.com.
Previously, Faisal was a founding team member of Lakson Venture Capital (Lakson VC); he built the fund from the ground up and led the team as Managing Partner & Executive Director.
Faisal has an MBA from Oxford University, joint Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Michigan State University USA. He has also been an investor in Hedge Funds, Venture Capital Funds and an active Angel Investor for over 15 years. Faisal is a limited partner of the Silicon Valley-based Venture Capital Fund 500 Startups.
MANAGING PARTNER AT DEOSAI VENTURES
Shehryar Hydri
Shehryar Hydri serves as a Managing Partner at Deosai Ventures. Its early stage investments have a tremendous focus on building Pakistan’s entrepreneurship community strong through financing, fundraising and investing in new enterprises.
Prior to this, he worked as an Independent Consultant and was a Secretary General at Pakistan Software Houses Association.
As the head of the sole IT industry association, he worked with MOITT and the Ministry of Commerce to launch the long awaited Digital Pakistan Policy 2018, the Ecommerce Policy Framework 2019 and multiple policy and project proposals.
With his team, Shehryar wa successful in establishing the Secretariat in Islamabad to ramp up engagement with the Federal and Provincial governments to launch new projects with multiple stakeholders, ranging from Facebook, Google and Microsoft to The World Bank, Ignite, SECP, SBP, PITB, KPITB etc. he also took charge of being a Member of the Advisory Board at Ingrain.
Shehryar completed his Bachelors and MBA in Marketing from Institute of Business Administration. He also holds an M.Phil degree from International Institute of Islamic Economics.
Board member | Professor | Angel investor | Founder
Maaike Doyer
An entrepreneur, educator, and executive , Maaike has an entrepreneurial heart. She is a founder at Epic Angels. This is a network of female executives and operators who have built and expanded companies in all parts of the world. Epic Angels is democratizing angel investing which makes angel investing accessible. It aims to give women the confidence to invest, by learning about the investment process, and understanding how other women invest.The company is on track to become the largest female-only angel network in Asia. The focus is to strengthen early-stage startups in Asia across all verticals in order to close the financial gender gap. Mike is also a regular speaker at conferences. She has created many (online) masterclasses, a professor at universities and MBA’s and mentor for several start-up accelerators.
Founder and GP - Fatima Gobi Ventures, Director -Fatima Group
Ali Mukhtar
Ali Mukhtar is the founder and CEO of Fatima Ventures, a progressive venture capital fund established in 2014, with the vision to support the startup ecosystem of Pakistan. Under his leadership, Fatima Ventures has partnered with Gobi Partners to launch Fatima Gobi Ventures and has invested in leading technology startups including Airlift, Tajir, Safepay, Abhi and Sasta Ticket.
Ali is an Advisory Board Member of National Incubation Centre Lahore, a joint venture between Fatima Ventures, Lahore University of Management Sciences and Ignite.
Ali also serves as a Director at Fatima Group, one of Pakistan’s leading conglomerates, where he oversees group strategy and investments.
Ali is a graduate from University of Pennsylvania
Ali is an Advisory Board Member of National Incubation Centre Lahore, a joint venture between Fatima Ventures, Lahore University of Management Sciences and Ignite.
Ali also serves as a Director at Fatima Group, one of Pakistan’s leading conglomerates, where he oversees group strategy and investments.
Ali is a graduate from University of Pennsylvania
Venture Partner at Speedinvest | Co-Founder Alma Angels | UKBAA Angel Investor of the Year 2021
Deepali Nangia
Deepali Nangia is an investor and mentor for early-stage startups in tech with a focus on female enterprise. She has a long list of potential investments. Some of them are: LiveBetter with (health commerce), PensionBee (fintech), Planera (formerly Polipop) (femtech) – Advisory Board, Parla (formerly Adia) (femtech), Kama Labs (femtech), Sano Genetics (digital health).
She has been serving as an Angel Investor at Atomico Angel Program. It invests in ambitious tech founders at Series A and beyond with a particular focus on Europe, leveraging deep operational experience to supercharge their growth. Atomico’s team of founders, investors and operational leaders have been responsible for global expansion, hiring and marketing.
Her role as Venture Partner at Speedinvest focuses on female founders pre-seed/seed transactions. Further at Alma Angels, the angel community aims to encourage and educate more women to angel invest into women owned businesses. The purpose is to build a more inclusive and passionate community for women. With respect to her education, Deepali completed her MBA from the University of Rochester choosing her majors in finance. She also holds a BA in Economics from the same institute. .
Her role as Venture Partner at Speedinvest focuses on female founders pre-seed/seed transactions. Further at Alma Angels, the angel community aims to encourage and educate more women to angel invest into women owned businesses. The purpose is to build a more inclusive and passionate community for women. With respect to her education, Deepali completed her MBA from the University of Rochester choosing her majors in finance. She also holds a BA in Economics from the same institute. .
SEA Startup Specialist
Sriraj
Sriraj serves as a Business Development Lead at Aspire which is the all-in-one finance operating system for growing businesses. Their mission is to empower the next generation of entrepreneurs with the financial tools they need to realise their company’s full potential. To fulfil this purpose, Sriraj is assisting the organization to make a meaningful impact to the communities we all are part of.
He has completed his Bachelor degree from the University of Murdoch in Banking and Management. His past experience is equipped with notable positions in Cash-IN-Asia where he worked as a Sales and Operations Manager and Senior Relationship Manager.
He has completed his Bachelor degree from the University of Murdoch in Banking and Management. His past experience is equipped with notable positions in Cash-IN-Asia where he worked as a Sales and Operations Manager and Senior Relationship Manager.
Data Scientist | Investor | Ex-Oliver Wyman
Nehan Chatoor
Nehan started her professional career in Management Consulting to learn about different business problems companies faced. Following that, Nehan joined a health-tech company called Collective Health to employ my Data Science education in practice and help impact the convoluted healthcare industry in the US. Having gained these skills, Nehan is now looking to help businesses in the developing world with their data products, as she believes there is a great opportunity to make businesses more efficient and technologically empowered in these parts of the world. Furthermore, growing up in a developing country has equipped her with the passion and cultural context needed to serve as this bridge.
Senior Manager, Capgemini Invent and Advisory Board Member of EcoEnergy
Jaleed Khawaja
Jaleed is the Senior consulting executive focusing on venture partnerships, venture growth, and sustainability-related topics across industry sectors. He is also the Managing Partner at Rock Vntrs.
Founder, Inaara Impact Ventures
Sadia Malik
Sadia Malik is a business analyst and project management professional with 12+ years of experience in driving digital projects from initiation to closure. She has worked with various Digital media houses in Australia and Pakistan and her latest role was as Head of QA Services for Kualitatem Inc. She currently juggles her roles as an investment philanthropist for Inaara Ventures and as the Director of Business Optimization for her family-run business conglomerate.
Inaara Impact Ventures is a private investment entity that provides funding, product prototyping, and impact assessment to social enterprises. INAARA IMPACT VENTURES is creating a framework for funding, product prototyping and infrastructure development for social business startups.
CEO and Founding Partner at 500 Global
Christine Tsai
500 Global is a venture capital firm with more than $2.7 billion¹ in assets under management that invests early in founders building fast-growing technology companies. We focus on markets where technology, innovation, and capital can unlock long-term value and drive economic growth.
Karandaaz
Karandaaz Pakistan, a Section 42 company established in August 2014, promotes access to finance for small businesses through a commercially directed investment platform, and financial inclusion for individuals by employing technology-enabled digital solutions. The Company has financial and institutional support from leading international development finance institutions; principally the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
Wamda
Wamda is an entrepreneurship empowering platform for entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa.
It takes a 360-degree approach to provide the support that entrepreneurs need, filling the gaps in the emerging MENA ecosystem via three primary platforms: a media site that is the leading source for startup and entrepreneurship news in the region, a fund, which is the largest early stage investment fund in the region, and a programs arm, that includes our Mix N’ Mentor event series.
Wamda is run by a passionate team of entrepreneurs and experts and by a board of leading serial entrepreneurs and investors.
It takes a 360-degree approach to provide the support that entrepreneurs need, filling the gaps in the emerging MENA ecosystem via three primary platforms: a media site that is the leading source for startup and entrepreneurship news in the region, a fund, which is the largest early stage investment fund in the region, and a programs arm, that includes our Mix N’ Mentor event series.
Wamda is run by a passionate team of entrepreneurs and experts and by a board of leading serial entrepreneurs and investors.
Founder, Inaara Impact Ventures
Insitor Impact
Based in Singapore and operating as a Venture Capital Fund Management company licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Insitor invests venture capital funding into startups throughout emerging and frontier Asian markets. We invest with the rigor and discipline of a for-profit venture capital fund with the expectation of maximizing social impact while providing patient and responsible financial returns.
Insitor’s objective is to contribute to the development of a fair and inclusive marketplace that serves the prevalent unmet needs of low-income communities.
Insitor’s objective is to contribute to the development of a fair and inclusive marketplace that serves the prevalent unmet needs of low-income communities.
Osman Ahmed
Osman is an experienced technology & business development professional with experience across the Asia Pacific and Europe. He is knowledgeable and experienced in developing complex services and solutions for various industry verticals, providing input on commercial, regulatory, and legal discussions for products and services, especially when related to cross-border requirements. Experienced working with and supporting new business startups.
Osman has Proven experience in working within multi-cultural, multi timezone teams and works well at bridging the gaps between technical, commercial, and operational business disciplines.
Osman has Proven experience in working within multi-cultural, multi timezone teams and works well at bridging the gaps between technical, commercial, and operational business disciplines.
OPEN US
The Organization of Pakistani Entrepreneurs (OPEN) Global is the world’s premier entrepreneur network. Founded in 1998 in Boston, OPEN has grown to eleven chapters in some of the world’s most dynamic hubs of entrepreneurship − in the U.S, U.K. and Pakistan. OPEN’s membership boasts leading entrepreneurs, business leaders and corporate professionals. OPEN chapters host dozens of networking, knowledge-sharing and mentoring events every month. OPEN Global ensures coordination across chapters and drives global initiatives and growth through the launch of new chapters. The non-profit organization is registered in Massachusetts, and is governed by an independent Board of Directors and an elected President.
Pak Launch
Paklaunch.com is a platform driving growth in the Pakistani entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem by:
> Showcasing accomplishments and achievements of distinguished Pakistanis,
> Helping Pakistani entrepreneurs through advisory, training, or fundraising,
> Enabling discussions on the global investment opportunities including but not limited to stocks, real estate, startups, etc,
> Facilitating networking and collaboration through group discussions and events (Virtual and In-person).
> Showcasing accomplishments and achievements of distinguished Pakistanis,
> Helping Pakistani entrepreneurs through advisory, training, or fundraising,
> Enabling discussions on the global investment opportunities including but not limited to stocks, real estate, startups, etc,
> Facilitating networking and collaboration through group discussions and events (Virtual and In-person).
