Paismo, a HR-tech startup providing “hire to retire” solutions has closed a $1.3M seed round, led by Indus Valley Capital. US VC Antler and Middle East’s Jedar Capital also participated, taking the total funding to date to $1.5M.
Founded by University of Pennsylvania alumni Rebecka Zavaleta and Usama Mahmud, the US/Pakistan-based startup provides a SaaS offering that they call Pakistan’s 1st modern HR-Tech, Payroll, and Benefit provider. According to their press statement, HR Tech stands to be over a $32 billion global market.
Aatif Awan, founder of Indus Valley Capital said: “I saw firsthand at LinkedIn how software can create economic opportunity globally. With Paismo, we are excited about the opportunity to build an incredible ‘Made in Pakistan, for the World’ SaaS product to solve a huge problem for employers and employees across emerging markets.”
Since its launch in Pakistan in 2023, the startup has partnered up with Adamjee Insurance and MCB Islamic Bank amongst others to provide easy access to insurance and financial benefits. They are currently offering a free product demo globally. Pakistani businesses can get access to discounted pricing through referrals from benefit partners like MCB Islamic Bank.
Paismo’s funding news comes amidst Pakistan’s dry funding spell, which saw no deals in July. The country had its worst quarter since Q1-2020 as funding dipped to just $5.2M in Q2-2023. The year has also been marred with closures and pivots as Pakistan’s macroeconomic landscape remained tumultuous.
