Pakistan-based startup Udhaar Book raises USD 6 million in seed round

Udhaar Book, a Karachi-based app for Pakistan’s small businesses, raised USD 6 million in a seed funding round led by Fatima Gobi Ventures on 8 November 2021.

Investors: Pakistan’s Fatima Gobi Ventures (FGV) led the latest funding round with participation from Plaid co-founder WilliamHockey’s Muir Capital, Tinder Co-Founder Justin Mateen’s JAM Fund, Atlas Ventures, Commerce Ventures, Liberty City Ventures, Integra Partners, Omri Dahan, a C-level executive at US-based card issuing company Marqeta, and Immad Akhund, Founder and CEO of Mercury Bank.

The Objectives behind the funding: The company plans to deploy the current proceeds to build out Udhaar Book’s super app ecosystem, enabling small businesses to conduct digital bookkeeping, invoicing, managing inventory, staff attendance, invoicing and payroll – in a single, seamless application.

About Udhaar Book

Founded in 2020 by Myra Ali, Shahjahan Warraich and Fahad Kamr, Udhaar book is an online ledger application that helps small businesses keep track of their financials. The company’s platform offers an online ledger like an online khata or journal to record outstanding debt and send auto-reminders to customers to increase collection and cash flow, enabling users to manage their credit with customers and suppliers in a hassle-free manner. In Pakistan, Udhaar Book stands out as a one-stop-shop for end-to-end small business operations. No other app offers merchants the ability to manage their inventory and payroll, in addition to accounting and collection needs. 

What the Founder has to say:

Fahad Kamr, Founder and CEO of Udhaar Book, said: "The majority of small business owners in Pakistan continue to do their accounts on paper and process payments in cash, which is kept in what we call the 'wooden cash drawer'. So small business owners typically work 16-hour days to monitor this drawer and minimize theft. Solving this problem requires digitizing all manual elements of the business while making the transition as seamless as possible for the already busy business owner.” “Udhaar Book has now evolved into a super app, essentially an operating system for small businesses. We free up the small merchant’s time, so he can spend it with his family and develop the full potential of his business,” Fahad added.

What the Investors have to say:

As a prominent investor in the digital future of Pakistan, Ali Mukhtar, General Partner for FGV, said, "in just over a year, Fahad and his team has brought Udhaar Book to new heights, from its Y Combinator credentials to now building out a holistic super app ecosystem for small businesses. We cannot wait to see what is next in the pipeline and are excited to join Udhaar Book on its journey to bring Pakistan into the global digital economy.”

Justin Mateen, #1 on Business Insider's Seed 100 Investor list, said, "Udhaar Book’s monthly active users have grown by over 1100% this year, and they’ve achieved that growth and retention by really focusing on the needs of their micro SME users. Excited to be a part of the journey.”

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