Saraaf cofounder Syed Ismail named to Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia
The Karachi commodity sourcing founder is one of seven Pakistanis on the 2026 list, placed in the Consumer and Enterprise Technology category.
Forbes has named Syed Ismail, cofounder of the Karachi commodity sourcing company Saraaf, to its 30 Under 30 Asia list for 2026. ProPakistani and Arab News reported on 30 May that he was placed in the Consumer and Enterprise Technology category, one of seven Pakistanis honoured this year.
Forbes' profile, published on 27 May, says Ismail cofounded Saraaf in 2021 to digitise commodity sourcing and make it more transparent. The company is launching a mobile app for businesses that source materials such as onyx and cotton from Central and South Asia, offering real time pricing, shipment tracking, digitised contracts and live chat. Forbes noted that Saraaf secured a $5.3 million investment commitment on Shark Tank Pakistan in 2024 and is preparing to go public this year.
The other Pakistanis on the list, according to ProPakistani, are Muhammad Furqan Karim Kidwai and Sarfraz Shahid Hussain of Plouton AI, scientist Maheera Ghani, youth leader Fahad Shahbaz, actor Hania Aamir and filmmaker Saman Kamran.
LUMS, where Ismail completed a BSc in 2021, congratulated him on 2 June. The Shark Tank commitment that Forbes cites was reported by Nukta in May 2025 to have stalled after filming, a claim a later Nukta report contradicted, and Saraaf has not publicly resolved the question.
