Pakistan’s startup funding falls 92% in H1 2024

July 10, 2024 (MLN): Pakistan’s startups attracted just $3 million in the first half of 2024, a 92% plunge compared to same period of last year, according to data analytics firm Magnitt.

This was the biggest drop in emerging markets covered by Magnitt in its report ‘H1 2024 Emerging Venture Markets VC Investment’.

Pakistani startups were only able to grab five deals during the period, a decline of 77% as compared to the same period last year.

Pct change vs. H1'23

Overall, Emerging Venture Markets (EVM), which include Middle East, Africa, Pakistan, Türkiye and South East Asia, experienced a drop of 34% in total fundings, amounting to $3,469m.

Total number of deals also dropped 34% to 618, the Dubai-based company said.

The total investors fell 4% to 914, while total exits dropped by 51% to 37.

Across EVMs, FinTech stood out as the leading sector despite a 35% drop in deal numbers. FinTech accounted for 21% of all investments in H1 2024, maintaining the same share as in H1 2023.

FinTech secured $1,097m in funding across 128 deals.

Country-wise, Singapore led across EVMs in all metrics, accounting for 38% of total funding, driven by 3 MEGA deals.

The largest investor based on estimated capital deployed was the China-based Alibaba Group, which invested about $234 million during the six-month period.

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