The people behind the companies: how they got here, what they build, and what they are betting on next.
28 stories
From digitizing millions of land records to developing agricultural financing solutions, the Group CEO of AOS and cofounder of Zaraat Dost is pursuing a long term vision built around technology, disciplined investment, and the transformation of traditional industries.
From Durham University to heading Development and Artificial Intelligence at Zaraat Dost, Muhammad Zayan Khan is part of an emerging generation of technology leaders seeking to reshape Pakistan's traditional industries through software engineering, artificial intelligence, and digital innovation.
Maheera Abdul Ghani finished a Cambridge PhD on two dimensional semiconductors in 2025. The same year, the organisation she cofounded for Pakistani girls won a Nature award.
Wahaj Ahmed ran Careem's Karachi business at 25, left McKinsey in June 2020 and cofounded Retailo, which raised about 45 million dollars in its first 18 months.
Adeel Abid left Banco Santander to cofound Linkstar, then took the commercial seat at Oliv in Dubai. His Karachi company has since gone quiet.
Syed Ismail joined two stone exporters in 2021 and made Saraaf the most talked about deal on Shark Tank Pakistan. Whether the money arrived is disputed.
Ali Raza ran operations for a startup that built portfolio sites for freelancers, won a place on Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia, and then went quiet.
The Daraz marketer and LUMS graduate cofounded Linkstar in 2022, raised money from SOSV and ended up running a Dubai careers portal. His own site has since gone dark.
A bank research project in late 2019 showed CreditBook's cofounder how much of Karachi's retail trade ran on handwritten credit, and she built the ledger that became a lender.
Anas Niaz built his first robotic hand for a five year old in 2016. A decade on, Bioniks has won international prizes and made its first delivery outside Pakistan, to children from Gaza.
The ModulusTech chief executive turned a university project into what the company calls Pakistan's first affordable net zero housing community. Nine years on, the company is small, and still standing.
KalPay's cofounder and chief operating officer runs the merchant and lending partnerships that let a Shariah aligned instalment service work in a cash economy.
The Retailo chief executive took a B2B marketplace from a Karachi launch to $60 million in funding, before the company retreated to Saudi Arabia.
The chief executive who brought Tiger Global to Pakistan has spent the years since turning a free ledger app into a licensed lender.
Kasra Zunnaiyyer built Trukkr's fleet software before the company had a lending licence. The data it collected became the reason it got one.
The ModulusTech cofounder grew up with Pakistan's 2005 earthquake and 2010 floods in the news. His company's answer is a home that fits on a truck, eleven at a time.
The least public of CreditBook's three founders is credited with proposing the ledger model that the other two built on, and is listed as the man who runs operations.
The LUMS computer science graduate had one failed startup and one profitable one behind him before BridgeLinx raised what was then the largest seed round in Pakistan.
Hamza Jawaid left Dubai consulting in 2020 to build Bazaar with a school friend. Five years and more than $100 million later, he is turning a procurement app into a payments company.
The quieter half of a Habib University founding pair has shipped two fintech products in six years. The second one records everything it does.
Aleena Nadeem left Goldman Sachs credit in London to build EduFi, a study now, pay later company that pays tuition upfront and lets families repay by the month.
Halima Iqbal spent a decade in Canadian finance. It took her three and a half months to get a basic account in Karachi, and that delay became a company.
ModulusTech's chief technology officer designed a steel framed home that ships flat and bolts together by hand. Convincing Pakistanis it would stand up was the harder job.
Sarkhail Bawany joined ABHI as a product manager, rose to run its product and made the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list at 27. His public profile since has been low.
Muhammad Owais Qureshi left Careem and Airlift to start Dastgyr in May 2020. Less than four years later he was writing to staff about a very difficult decision.
The Careem product manager came home to Karachi to cofound Bazaar. His Easy Khata app became the funnel that fed the whole business.
Shershah Hassan left a finance career to build KalPay, a Shariah aligned instalment service. Three years on, he says it covers its own costs.
The Habib University graduate built a mutual fund app for first time investors in Pakistan before moving to Singapore to automate the finance desk. Forbes noticed.
