Pakistan’s HealthTech Startup Marham Raises $1M Seed Funding
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Lahore-based Healthech startup Marham has raised $1M in Seed funding to double down on growth into a healthcare super-app. The round was led by Indus Valley Capital, a Pakistan-focused VC with the participation of top angel investor Weihan Liew from Southeast Asia.
Based on MAGNiTT’s Pakistan H1 2021 Venture Investment Report, the healthcare sector witnessed a staggering 65% decline in funding in H1 2021 YoY. Marking this splendid seed round not only as a game-changer in the industry, but also as an equivalent to all funds raised in healthcare startups in the first half of the year.
Marham.pk was launched as a digital platform helping patients find qualified doctors and book appointments via website, mobile application, and tele-helpline. Within a few years of bootstrapping, Marham evolved as a full-fledged telemedicine platform providing online video consultations to patients. Marham has registered 20,000 doctors from 67 cities in Pakistan and helped 10 Million+ patients through its network.
Marham also helps doctors digitize their practices, where doctors can manage their appointments, patient records and create awareness through Marham. Marham also provides feedback for doctors on how to improve their patient care through an interactive rating system. “Our vision is to build a healthcare ecosystem, for patients, doctors, and hospitals to ensure faster care and better experience via technology, processes, and telemedicine-enabled micro-clinics across Pakistan. I believe we are all set to do this because of the 1st mover advantage, well-equipped team, and the ability to sustain through bootstrapping.”, said Ehsan Imam, Marham CEO & Co-Founder.
In Pakistan, patients spend almost $3Bn yearly on private healthcare. However, the experience of finding a suitable and specialist doctor is painful, rough, and often with no availa. Asma Omer, Co-founder & COO Marham elaborated on Marham’s critical gap-closing role “For a developing economy like Pakistan, Marham will be a fortune-changer, that will save millions of lives, for years to come, and patients will get quality healthcare from authentic doctors, which will be easily accessible and affordable at the same time.
The HealthTech startup has recently launched additional services for lab test booking and online medicine to cater to the current needs, partnering with the leading labs and pharmacy networks in Pakistan. This has transformed Marham into a medical super-app for those seeking healthcare. Aatif Awan, leading Investor and Managing Partner of Indus Valley Capital, said: “We are excited to partner with Marham on their journey to provide affordable, quality healthcare to everyone in Pakistan. The founders' passion is inspiring, and the progress they've already made while bootstrapping is impressive. We look forward to working with them to accelerate Marham's growth.”
With its newly acquired funds, Marham aims to become the market leader for the health-tech industry expanding its services to smaller cities and rural areas. Investing in that vision, angel investor Weihan Liew concluded “Across the developing world, telemedicine will disrupt and democratize access to healthcare in the coming decade. As a venture investor in emerging markets, I am impressed by the Marham founders’ vision and tenacity, and am honored to participate in their journey to reshape how healthcare will be delivered in Pakistan. ”
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