PlanX raised $743,807 for 19 startups in 2016

BeautyHooked, RepairDesk, MangoBaaz, Car Chabi were among the startups

LAHORE: PlanX, Pakistan’s first technology accelerator, helped raise $743,807 for 19 of the country’s startups in 2016, said a statement issued by the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) on Tuesday.

This was accumulated from a total of 4,491 investors, subsequently creating 517 jobs, said the statement. Separately, four PlanX startups also raised $795,000 in seed funding during the course of the year.



The statement said that PlanX takes startups on a rolling basis. Startups can apply for acceleration at any time.



The startups that raised funding in 2016 included the likes of BeautyHooked, RepairDesk, MangoBaaz, Car Chabi among others.

The first to gather funding in 2016 was a PlanX alumni startup named Travly, which raised $200,000 from Cres Ventures. The second investment took place in the same month with a women-led startup, BeautyHooked, which raised $280,000 in a seed round led by Fatima Ventures.



In December, 2016 PlanX gained two more investments, thereby making MangoBaaz the third startup to raise seed funding of $115,000 from Fatima Ventures. A popular PlanX (alumni) startup, Patari, closed the year and raised $200,000 of seed stage funding from Sarmayacar, an investor syndicate.

The statement claimed that the investments raised in 2016 were the beginning of new untapped horizons for PlanX startups.



PlanX was established in September 2014 with a goal to bridge the gap between technology and businesses. The project aims to help commercially viable mid-stage technology startups by providing access to multiple funding channels, specialised network of mentors and global exposure.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 4^th, 2017.

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