Karandaaz and Vizpro Partner to Digitize Retail Payments and Expand Financing Access for Small Merchants

Islamabad, May 2 (DNA): Karandaaz, an impact investment platform dedicated to driving sustainable economic growth and strengthening financial and social protection systems for inclusion, has partnered with Vizpro, a technology-driven “Middle Mile” fintech platform transforming the FMCG retail ecosystem, digitizing merchant-to-distributor (M2D) payments, expanding access to working capital finance for small and medium-sized FMCG retailers across Pakistan and offering a robust communications platform.

This strategic collaboration seeks to address deep-rooted inefficiencies in the country’s FMCG retail landscape by minimizing dependency on cash-based transactions and enabling access to formal financial services for small merchants – most of whom are currently un-banked and operate within the informal economy. By building digital financial identities and integrating payment and credit services, the initiative aims to unlock greater resilience, transparency, and growth across Pakistan’s retail value chain.

“This initiative is a bold step towards formalizing Pakistan’s vast informal retail sector by enabling small retailers to build digital financial identities. In doing so, we are not only unlocking new growth opportunities for these businesses but also contributing to broader economic development. By adopting an all-digital approach, the project aims to demonstrate the efficiency and scalability of servicing micro and small enterprises – setting a precedent for ecosystem-wide innovation in inclusive finance.” – Waqas ul Hasan, CEO Karandaaz

Vizpro has digitized over PKR 5.0 billion in M2D payments, onboarded more than 13,000 merchants in Lahore, developed an effective branchless banking agents’ ecosystem and put in place a strong distributor network in Lahore. The platform collaborates with leading financial service providers, including Easypaisa and JazzCash, and has recently secured a financing enablement partnership with CreditBook. Key FMCGs including Pakistan Tobacco Company are collaborating with Vizpro to transform their trade/sales operations.

With Karandaaz’s support, Vizpro’s digital platform, Vizlink, will now be scaled to reach an additional 16,000 FMCG retailers, in Tier 2 cities across Punjab and in Karachi. The platform offers a bundled suite of services, enabling retailers to digitally place orders, make digital payments to distributors, and access short-term credit to finance inventory – all within a single ecosystem.

A key component of the project includes the enablement of Raast QR, allowing retailers to accept instant digital payments from customers. This move is expected to accelerate the shift toward a cash-lite economy, reduce the friction associated with informal cash handling, and deepen financial inclusion at the last mile.

“We started our journey by solving the cash management problem for the FMCG Middle Mile (Retailer to Distributor) and have ended-up developing a complete supply chain solution dealing with digital payments, merchant finance and a robust communications platform. This entire initiative is not only going to revolutionize the FMCG retail ecosystem but also play a key role in the country’s digitization. Our partnership with Karandaaz has been transformative and will encourage stakeholders to view digitization as a positive and progressive change. This will not only go along way in terms of promoting adoption of digital tools but also crowd in investment.” – Akbar Ayub Khan, CEO / Co-Founder Vizpro

“With this partnership, we are now scaling the successful pilot of digitizing merchant-to-distributor payments across Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities. Along with that, we are even more excited to pilot and demonstrate first-of-its-kind fintech innovation in Pakistan that directly addresses the working capital financing gap for small merchants. By bringing order management, digital payments, and working capital financing onto a single platform, this initiative is transforming how business happens at the grassroots level. It’s not just about going digital; it’s about making simple yet necessary tools available for small merchants to thrive and grow.” – Sharjeel Murtaza, CDO Karandaaz

By tackling long-standing challenges in the informal FMCG retail economy, the Karandaaz–Vizpro partnership goes beyond technological adoption. It represents a blueprint for scalable, locally tailored fintech innovation – designed to build capacity, formalize economic activity, and inspire a broader transformation in how FMCG retail business is conducted in Pakistan.