Bazaar Technologies, a Pakistan blockchain-powered business-to-business (B2B) marketplace, has successfully secured a fresh $30 million in Series A funding round.
In an August 24 announcement, Bazaar confirmed the successful completion of its Series A funding initiative led by the Silicon Valley-based Defy Partners and Singapore’s Wavemaker Partner.
The funding initiative also saw participation from other notable investors, including Endeavor, LinkedIn, Japan’s Saison, and existing investments from Indus Valley Capital and Alter Global.
Bazaar Technologies currently serves more than 750,000 merchants spread in 400 towns and villages, with the platform now self-proclaiming to be the leading B2B marketplace platform for small merchants in the whole of Pakistan.
The latest Bazaar funding round brings the firm’s total valuation to $37.8 million, building on its $6.5 million seed round in January 2021 and $1.3 million pre-seed round in June 2021.
The startup was established in 2019 by co-founders Saad Jangda and Hamza Jaiwaid. Previously, Jangda served as a product manager at the local Uber subsidiary, Careem, while Jawaid worked at McKinsey Management Firm.
Pakistan authorities have made several progressive moves that develop a more permissive regulatory atmosphere in the crypto sector over the recent months.
In November, Pakistan’s Securities and Exchange Commission established an open forum, with the commission publishing a consultation paper that explored the benefits of crypto assets and tokenization. The document also welcomed industry feedback on how regulations should be developed.
In March, the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa announced that it would host two hydro-powered crypto mining firms for a state-backed mining pilot.
