Partners
Women Ventures’ vision for institutional partnerships is to strengthen the ecosystem that fosters women-led SMEs in Pakistan. By collaborating with other entrepreneurial ecosystem players, we seek to create a network effect and build a community that effectively addresses the unique and complex needs of women entrepreneurs.
Currently, Fatima Gobi Ventures, a joint venture between Fatima Ventures (Pvt.) Ltd. and Gobi Partners, has joined hands with Karandaaz as a co-investment partner. The Social Innovation Lab, Telenor Velocity, and National Bank Pakistan have also signed MOUs with us to support pipeline development through deal referrals.
Accredited institutions that are interested in pipeline sharing and co-investment with Women Ventures are invited to apply to partner on this initiative.
Partnership Categories and Scope
Women Ventures is open to the following partnership categories:
- Deal Referrals
Women Ventures will partner with established incubators, accelerators, VCs, and universities to develop a pipeline of late stage women-led businesses seeking business development support and investment funding.
- Co-investment
Women Ventures will partner with accredited entities for co-investment opportunities. Pipeline of late-stage startups and SMEs that are women-led and owned will be considered for investment. The decision to co-investment will be at the sole discretion of each party (i.e. Karandaaz and potential co-investing partner). Subject to regulatory approval, Karandaaz is open to negotiating an annual management fee for a co-investment partner that is interested in managing a joint investment.
A memorandum of understanding (MOU) will be signed between Karandaaz and the partner institution to formalise the terms of collaboration.
Eligibility Criteria for Partner Selection
Any potential institutional partner may apply for one or more of the partnership categories. Karandaaz is also open to applications from consortiums.
The application for institutional partnership is open to the following:
- Institutional Investors
- Venture Capital Funds
- Incubators and Accelerators
- Startup and SME Networks
Partners with a strong track record for developing innovative approaches and delivering results will be prioritized. The potential partner must be registered with the appropriate regulatory authority, it must have established organisational systems and tested instruments to provide support in the selected partnership category. Applications will only be accepted from institutions. Individual applicants will not be considered for institutional partnership.
ApplyProcess Outline
Partnership life cycle outline for 1) Deal Referrals 2) Co-investment+Investment Management
Eligibility Criteria for Partner Selection
Karandaaz Women Ventures, in the endeavor to address the access to the finance gap for women entrepreneurs, will be accepting applications for institutional partnerships. The objective of the partnership is to strengthen our response to the financing needs of women-owned and managed businesses by expanding outreach. Through institutional partnerships, Women Ventures looks to support the following segments of women-led businesses with strong job creation and development impact potential:
- SMEs requiring capital to scale, and unlock growth
- Late-stage start-ups which require growth capital to scale
Submission of applications does not guarantee selection for the program. Karandaaz retains the right to reject applications without providing any reason. Decisions made by Karandaaz or its appointees at all stages of the selection and financial award process will be considered final and will not be contestable.
