Category: Business

Lahore – Muhammad Yasir–  Karandaaz Pakistan, the leading source of financing and ongoing support for Pakistan’s innovative growing companies, today signed grant agreements of US$ 300,000 i.e $ 100,000 each with Ricult Pakistan, Paysys Labs and PublishEX Solutions, winners of the first-ever Fintech Disrupt Challenge in Pakistan. Both the challenge and resultant grants have been funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Out of a total of 61 applications from all parts of the country, 28 were invited to present at the Fintech Disrupt Challenge 2016 held in collaboration with LUMS Center for Entrepreneurship in November last year. Ten finalists were shortlisted by judges which included subject matter and investor experts from ArbiSoft, Acumen, Bank Al-Falah and board members of Karandaaz. Out of which these three companies emerged as the winners. “This competition showcased an incredible display of talent from startups across the nation. We have now completed the first step in the process with these awards. The next and more vital piece of this challenge will be getting the deals completed, and setting up a soft landing for winning startups who aspire to disrupt FinTech industry. We look forward to expediting that process and helping these startups gain traction in the Pakistan market,” said Ali Sarfraz, CEO of Karandaaz Pakistan. “

Rehan Akhtar, Director Digital Financial Services, Karandaaz Pakistan added, “The initial mobilization amount will give the winners a kick-start to their projects. With this grant, we intend to provide them with capital inflow for the next one year so the startups remain focused on operationalization of their products/services rather than worrying about lack of finance. We expect these FinTechs to be sustainable in the long run and create an impact in the digital financial services industry.”

Ricult is focused towards changing the way farming has been done by bringing a more ‘databased’ approach and reducing inefficiencies in the system. A farmer can register for free with Ricult by phone, where he can order supplies and be referred to a credit partner if he needs a loan on convenient and affordable credit terms. The money is then transferred to Ricult, which manages delivery of the products to the farmers. Ricult earns a small percentage of each transaction. Through this grant, Ricult will integrate a mobile-wallet in their platform which will seamlessly disburse amounts to the farmer’s account.

Paysys Labs, is a technology startup in the domain of digital financial services with a key focus on research and development. Karim Jindani believes that secure & friction-less identity verification is one of the major challenge in DFS space. Using the FinTech Disrupt Challenge award, they will be introducing a biometric ID verification solution that uses smart phone camera. This will provide FinTechs and financial service providers, seamless biometric authentication, anytime and anywhere.

Salim Karim and Yassir Pasha of PublishEX Solutions plan to use the grant amount to build their platform, Direct Carrier Billing (DCB), a payment channel which enables merchants to seamlessly monetize digital goods and services for their users on a global scale. Their service aims to provide users with a simple, secure and fast way of making payments via available balance in their mobile sim without any requirement of a credit card or a bank account.

About Karandaaz Pakistan

KARANDAAZ PAKISTAN, a not-for-profit company registered under SECP in August 2014, promotes access to finance for small businesses through a commercially directed investment platform, and financial inclusion for individuals by employing technology enabled digital solutions.

The Company has financial and institutional support from leading international development finance institutions; principally the United Kingdom Department for International Development (UKAid) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Lahore –  (Muhammad Yasir) – “Following our vision of ‘innovation’, we are now introducing “ANTIMICROBIAL WATER SUPPLY PIPES”, manufactured by using world’s latest D2P technology, a revolutionary technology used for the first time in the piping industry of Pakistan in collaboration with Business Dynamics. The purpose is to provide clean and safe water to the people of Pakistan”. These thoughts were shared by Mr. Qazi Sajid Ali, CEO & Director Dadex at the signing ceremony between Dadex Eternit Limited and Business Dynamics Private Limited.

“Microbial contamination build up in water distribution pipes pose a direct risk to public health because of water borne diseases. Dadex being the market leader and trend setter in piping industry of Pakistan is committed to water conservation as well as the supply of safe water for the health & well-being of people”, Mr. Qazi added.

Explaining the importance of “Antimicrobial pipes”, Mr. Amir Younis, Managing Director Business Dynamics said that pipes are the backbone of water distribution systems and they provide a suitable milieu for micro organisms, including bacteria, fungi and algae. Microbes which survive in the distribution system process have the ability to grow and produce a surface deposit of micro organisms, and organic and inorganic materials that accumulate within a slime layer called “BIO FILM”. It induces many problems in water like; change in color, odor, taste and turbidity, blockage of pipes and inefficacy of disinfection treatment.

“Dadex antimicrobial pipes” contain state of the art d2p Antimicrobial technology, developed by Symphony Environmental Ltd. U.K. which provides long lasting protection against ‘Bacteria, Fungi and Algae’. Dadex d2p antimicrobial pipes are an innovative solution which will definitely grasp the market as it provides maximum protection for health and against water borne diseases.

Lahore –  Telenor Pakistan has been nominated for the prestigious GSMA Global Mobile Awards – 2017 (a.k.a GLOMO 2017) for the fifth consecutive year. The nominations are for two categories: “Outstanding Mobile Contribution to the UN SDGs” and “Best Mobile Payment Solution” for Easypaisa.

The GSMA Global Mobile Awards are commonly dubbed as the “Oscars” of the Mobile and Telecommunication industry. In 2014, Telenor Pakistan’s Mobile Financial Service “Easypaisa” won two GSMA awards for “Best NFC/Mobile money product or service” and “Best Mobile Product or service for women in emerging markets”. In 2013 and 2015 Easypaisa was also nominated at the awards.

 LAHORE  –  EcoStar – a nationwide leading brand of consumer electronics – has now launched a new advertising campaign for its LED TVs. The advertisement features the famous artist and media icon – Fahad Mustafa – for celebrity-endorsement. The new TV commercial will highlight EcoStar’s high-performance LED Televisions and Home-Entertainment technologies that feature crystal-clear visuals and a dynamic sound-quality. This new advertising campaign will promote the advanced features of EcoStar Televisions that promise exceptional entertainment for the consumers, who will be able to enjoy the most thrilling and memorable experiences, especially during the upcoming ‘Second Edition’ of the PSL cricket tournament in Dubai, where some of the greatest stars of international cricket will be showing exciting performances.

Lahore  –    Unilever announced the team from Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) as winners of Unilever Talent Hunt 2016 (UTH 2016) at the grand finale held at a local hotel. Students from universities across Pakistan competed for the opportunity to represent Pakistan at Unilever’s Future Leader’s League in London, a global competition that brings together students from across the world to experience the nuances of future leadership.

Unilever Talent Hunt (UTH) is a business competition aimed at providing under-grad students the opportunity to showcase their academic and strategic acumen whilst building employer branding at various Pakistani universities. This year’s competition focused on a core marketing plan of five brands, including Fair & Lovely, Cornetto, Lux, Lipton and Surf Excel.

Unilever Talent Hunt had previously focused on a wide range of challenges for the students to propose creative responses to ranging from marketing, brand building and sustainability.

Pakistan’s top nine universities were engaged through campus activations in 2016, reaching more than 5000 students from diverse academic backgrounds including business and engineering.
Twelve top teams from the 300 registrations received were shortlisted and went through mentoring sessions by Unilever brand teams over the course of four weeks to build and present their ideas. Students were also provided minimum funding to test their ideas on-ground for the semi-finals post which only six teams were progressed to the finale round.

The winners will also get a headstart into the Unilever Future Leaders Program (UFLP)/Unilever Internship Program (ULIP) Assessment Center, which is the first step towards a potential career at Unilever Pakistan.

ISLAMABAD – The global CEO of Friesland Campina Roelof Joosten and Chairman Engro Corporation Hussain Dawood met with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif where they jointly discussed possible opportunities to develop the dairy industry in the country through knowledge transfer and provision of nutritious value-added products amongst others.

The Global CEO along with Hussain Dawood highlighted the need to explore partnership opportunities with the government to bring the local dairy industry at par with international standards and contribute to Pakistan’s dairy sector’s development.

Friesland Campina is one of the world’s largest dairy companies owned by 19,000 member farmers, with annual revenues of more than 11 billion Euros. Friesland Campina provides dairy products to millions of consumers worldwide everyday through its expansive global footprint with activities in over 32 countries, exporting to over 100 countries and employing over 22,000 people worldwide.

 ISLAMABAD – Bestway Cement Limited has once again been recognised for its contributions and efforts towards the environmental and social responsibility in Pakistan.

Bestway received this recognition at National Forum for Environment & Health’s 6th Annual Corporate Social Responsibility Awards 2017 recently held in Islamabad.

The categories commended were Education & Scholarships, Green Energy Initiatives, Community Development & Services and Vocational Trainings.

The participants of the awards were the leading local and multinational firms of Pakistan, who are at the helm of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts in Pakistan. The awards are yet another milestone for Bestway Cement and a testament of its endeavours to strengthen lives.

Bestway plays an active part in the socio-economic development of local communities such as improving access to health services and education, taking part in urban development, environmental conservation programmes and helping create businesses and jobs.

The company regularly gives generous financial grants to various educational and health institutions in addition to the scholarships, which are provided to a large number of talented students throughout the country. Free and quality education is being provided to hundreds of boys & girls through Bestway Foundation School in Tatral, District Chakwal, and Farah Pervez College for Girls in Tehsil Gujjar Khan.

Bestway offers regular monthly stipends to a large number of widows and indigents of the local communities. Free dispensaries have also been established at all plants, providing free medical facilities to thousands of patients every year from the surrounding areas. Substantial contributions are also made towards various welfare causes such as flood relief activities and projects of social and communal uplift.

Environment-friendly waste heat recovery power plants have been installed at all production sites of Bestway, reducing reliance on the national grid and producing zero greenhouse gas emissions in the process.

Bestway plants are not only ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management System (EMS) certified, meeting stringent environmental quality standards prescribed by EPA, Pakistan, but also surpass both national and international standards for emissions. As part of environment conservation campaigns, more than 100,000 trees and plants are also sown every year in and outside the factory premises.

Bestway places great importance on the training, development and education of its personnel. At any given time, Bestway employs more than 100 trainee engineers, management trainees and apprentices who undergo intensive training at various departments, some of whom are later retained in the Company, while others move on to other industries where they successfully build upon the robust foundation provided to them at Bestway Cement Limited for the advancement of their careers and contributing towards the development of the country.

LAHORE- DWP Group has inaugurated a new EDP (EcoStar Digital Plaza) at the Emporium Mall, in Johar Town where a complete range of innovative products from EcoStar and GREE will be available for consumers. As part of the inaugural celebrations, this modern Display CentrE will also offer a 5% discount on all EcoStar products for a limited time to its early customers.

DWP Group is the producer of EcoStar LED televisions, washing machines, water dispensers and power products and official brand partner of GREE Air Conditioners all over Pakistan. The company ensures convenient availability of the latest products, along with prompt after-sales-service and support. A grand inauguration ceremony was recently held to unveil the new outlet.

It has a state of the art design to provide the consumers with an opportunity to explore experience and purchase the most innovative products from technology-leading companies like EcoStar and Gree.

Chairman and CEO of DWP Group Farooq Naseem along with Chief Operating Officer of DWP Rizwan Butt inaugurated this vast shopping facility and stated, “DWP Group has a deep commitment to ensure continuous innovation in its products, while we also continue to create the most convenient and enjoyable shopping experiences. We are consistently seeking newer, more pleasant, ways to reach out to our consumers. This new store in Lahore is a major milestone towards expanding our retail outreach and delivering world-class services to our honoUred customers.”

Rizwan Butt concluded by expressing his words, ‘’No doubt Emporium Mall is new shopping sensation of the town and we try to enhance the ease of our customers by creating ‘under one roof’ shopping opportunities for them and we believe that DWP Group is blend of quality and convenience.’’

EcoStar is a nationwide brand of electronics and technological excellence. It is the leading producer of LED Televisions. The feature-rich LED TV models produced by EcoStar include ‘4K UHD Smart LED TV’ (VERO), the ‘3D Smart LED TV’, the ‘Smart LED TV’, and the standard ‘LED TV’ Gree is a world-leading enterprise of smart-inverter technology air-conditioners.

LAHORE –  The Pakistan Poultry Association Pharmaceutical Wing has appreciated the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) Chairman Dr Aslam Afghani for his commitment to resolve the poultry sector issues on priority basis.

The members of PPA North Zone Pharma Wing, in the lead of Khalid Saleem Malik, met with the DRAP chairman and apprised him the issues faced by the poultry sector of the country. The PPA delegation urged him to expedite the process of enlistment of poultry products and lift undue sanctions on the poultry medicines as it could cause severe shortage of poultry medicines in the country.

The association members said that poultry is one of the biggest employment-provider and source of revenue to the government but it could face crisis-like situation due to some scrupulous elements in the industry. The delegation said that current regulation to enlist the importer and products may create a crisis leading to shortage of these basic products used by the poultry farmers.

The delegation suggested that the poultry alternative medicine and health products which have been already legally imported may kindly be allowed to be sold. They said that the companies with Form number 6, whose consignments are at port, may be allowed to get them cleared and sold in the market. They said that the criteria of documentation for the enlistment of veterinary/poultry products be formulated according to their country of origin and international practices.

The chairman was informed that consignments of veterinary medicines are held at ports, causing huge damage to the importers, urging the DRAP to get the issue resolved. The delegation informed him that so far only limited number of companies has been issued Form number 6 (Enlistment as Local Importers/Agents), while none of companies/importers have been issued Form number 07 for enlistment of products.

The DRAP chairman agreed with the industry that there must be discrimination between the drugs for human lives and veterinary medicine which were unfortunately, being treated in same way. Dr Aslam assured that DRAP would act promptly and rescue the poultry industry through immediate relief measures.

Islamabad – Atilla Yerlikaya, GM, Group Director Public Affairs and Chairman of Pakistan-Turkey Business Council, Coca Cola Beverages Pakistan Limited along with 3-member delegation visited Board of Investment and met with MOS/Chairman, Board of Investment to discuss different investment opportunities available in Pakistan. The MOS/Chairman, BOI welcomed the Coca-Cola delegation and informed them that Pakistan has one of the most liberal foreign investment regimes in South Asia. 100% foreign equity is permitted in the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors of the economy as the country has a more market-oriented economy, with rapidly growing private sector in Pakistan.
Atilla Yerlikaya, GM, Coca-Cola Company thanked BOI for cooperation and facilitation and informed about the company’s future investment plans for establishing of two new plants at Faisalabad and Islamabad. The Company has already invested 500 million US$ during this year on the up-gradation of the existing plants in the country. He added that Coca-Cola is a leading US investor in Pakistan. M/s. Coca-Cola is presently contemplating a further US$ 200 million of green field investment, and expand Coca-Cola’s production and distribution capacity in Pakistan. He further informed that Coca-Cola intends preferably to establish their units at Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Pakistan.
Mr. Atilla Yerlikaya, has also requested BOI for support on rationalization of tax regime in Pakistan and to curb the infringement, as some groups are violating industrial property rights and this practice is not only defaming original brands and reducing the revenue of Pakistan. Government of Pakistan may ensure operation of legitimate companies and take steps to provide level playing field to genuine investors
Dr. Miftah Ismail, MOS/Chairman, BOI said that BOI will extend full support to M/s. Coca Cola and advised them to establish their one unit at Faisalabad in SEZ, M.III, which were agreed by M/s. Coca Cola. The MOS/Chairman, BOI also assured them to assist for their second unit at SEZ, Islamabad as and when finalized.