Epic Angels Invests in Neem to Transform Pakistan’s Digital Payment Landscape
Epic Angels, the largest investment collective for women, has made a significant investment in Neem—a leading payments infrastructure platform aimed at modernizing Pakistan’s financial ecosystem. Neem facilitates the transition from cash to digital transactions, offering seamless collections, disbursements, and integrated wallets for businesses across the nation.
This funding round also sees participation from notable investors such as DNI Group, Hi2 Global, and AKD. Existing Seed investors, including SparkLabs Ventures, Outrun Ventures, Arif Habib, and MyAsiaVC, as well as strategic angel investors from global fintech giants like Stripe, PayNet, and Aspire, have also joined forces in this pre-Series A funding round.
The capital raised will be directed toward scaling Neem’s technological infrastructure, enhancing cybersecurity and data protection measures, and expanding corporate partnerships. Additionally, the funds will accelerate Neem’s integration into vital sectors like logistics, insurance, healthcare, e-commerce, and agriculture.
Digitizing Pakistan’s Payments Ecosystem
Pakistan’s payments ecosystem is characterized by fragmentation. Despite having a population exceeding 250 million, with a majority under 30 years of age, roughly 71% of the total transaction value is still conducted via over-the-counter cash and traditional channels. This scenario underscores the pressing need for a more efficient and transparent digital payments solution.
Businesses often juggle multiple payment providers for revenue collection, supplier payments, and payroll management, leading to operational inefficiencies and a lack of real-time financial visibility. Neem addresses these pain points by providing a comprehensive payments platform that streamlines collections, disbursements, and branded wallets—all through a single API. This model mirrors the capabilities of advanced payments infrastructure seen in developed markets.
Neem’s Founders and Rapid Growth
Founded by industry veterans Vladimira Briestenska, Nadeem Shaikh, and Naeem Zamindar, Neem officially launched its core offerings in January 2025. Since then, the platform has experienced exponential growth, achieving over a 30% month-over-month increase in transaction volumes and currently supporting more than 50 B2B companies across various sectors, including logistics, insurance, healthcare, e-commerce, and agriculture.
“We are thrilled to welcome Epic Angels as an investor in Neem,” remarked co-founder Vladimira Briestenska. “Their global expertise and commitment to supporting businesses in emerging markets enhance our vision to build a leading payments infrastructure platform for Pakistan and beyond. With their backing, we can effectively accelerate the shift from cash to digital transactions.”
Strategic Insight from Epic Angels
Maaike Doyer, founder and managing partner of Epic Angels, emphasized the enormous opportunity for local payment platforms like Neem. “Global players such as Stripe and Adyen hold less than 10% of the global payments market and primarily focus on established regions. This leaves a substantial gap for innovative solutions in markets like Pakistan,” she stated.
“With significant traction already within the logistics, insurance, and agriculture sectors, Neem is poised to become the financial operating system for Pakistan’s burgeoning digital economy. We are excited to support their growth with access to Epic Angels’ vast global investor network,” she added.