Bfree, a Nigerian credit management fintech has embarked on global expansion after raising $1.7 million in a pre-Series A round, to tap the opportunities in emerging markets, where digital lending apps have recently sprung up in droves. Funds that participated in the latest round included 4Di Capital, Octerra Capital, VestedWorld, Voltron Capital, Logos Ventures, and […]
Pakistani Taliban declare end to month-long ceasefire with government
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan accuse state of breaching terms including a prisoner release agreementTaliban militants in Pakistan have declared an end to a month-long ceasefire arranged with the aid of the Afghan Taliban, accusing the government of breach…
‘People should be helped, not punished’: could Pakistan’s suicide law be about to change?
Criminalisation means survivors are vulnerable to blackmail to avoid imprisonment and stigma, but there is hope the colonial-era legislation could soon be repealedIt was when the police knocked on Aatifa Farooqui’s* door and threatened to send her to p…
Arbisoft co-founder Yasser Bashir on building trust with early-stage startups
Arbisoft is the latest addition to our series profiling startup software consultants. Its CEO Yasser Bashir shared thoughts on agile development, data science, customer and employee satisfaction, etc.
Pakistani nuclear weapons scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan dies aged 85
PM pays tribute to ‘national icon’ who turned country into atomic power but later admitted smuggling nuclear secretsAbdul Qadeer Khan, considered to be the father of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons programme and later accused of smuggling technology to Iran…
Pandora Papers: tax avoidance revelations prompt outraged denials
International reaction to offshore data leak ranges from pledges to clamp down to anger and cries of old newsSee all of our Pandora papers coverageThe Pandora Papers’ revelations prompted an avalanche of international reaction on Monday, ranging from s…
Pandora papers: at a glance
Key revelations from leaked files exposing an alternative financial world where the super-rich can hide their assets and pay little or no taxPandora papers news and reaction – live updatesSee all of our Pandora papers coverage Continue reading…
Oraan raises $3M to increase financial inclusion among Pakistani women
After working as an investment banker in Canada for a decade, Halima Iqbal moved back to Pakistan in 2017 and quickly realized how difficult it is for women to access financial services. “I had a really hard time opening up a basic bank account. It took me about three and a half months,” Iqbal told […]
Fintech startup Tag valued at $100 million in Pakistan’s largest seed round
Tag, a one-year-old startup that offers banking and financial services to users in Pakistan, has raised over $12 million in what is now the largest seed financing round in the South Asian market. Liberty City Ventures, Canaan Partners, Addition, Mantis and Banana Capital and others financed the round, which brings YC-backed Tag’s to-date raise to […]
‘It’s heartbreaking’: Steve McCurry on Afghan Girl, a portrait of past and present
The US photographer’s image of Sharbat Gula captured the story of a country, its people and refugees across the world. Thirty six years on, another picture tells a similar tale – but also one of hopeOn 1 September, a young Afghan girl stood in line wit…