Page 15 - CMA Journal (July-August 2025)

Exclusive Interview

Beyond funding, Planet N has pioneered multiple fintech
concepts in Pakistan by working closely with regulators
to introduce digital insurance, crowdfunding models, The Pakistan Fintech Network
asset fractionalization, and high-throughput carrier
billing through its sponsored startups. This proactive (PFN) serves as the apex
engagement has helped open new regulatory pathways
for emerging fintechs. organization for the country’s

When evaluating investments, we look for founders with fintech ecosystem, bringing
grit, strong regulatory alignment, and scalable technology.
Startups must demonstrate clear product–market fit and together fintechs, banks, telcos,
the potential to integrate with digital banks or embedded
finance ecosystems. Ventures that leverage payment, and payment providers to speak
merchant, or behavioral data to create actionable financial
services—such as predictive credit, automated savings, or with a unified voice
SME lending—are best positioned to scale sustainably and
attract institutional capital.
ICMA: How can Planet N help accelerate digitalization payments. Partnerships with digital banks, marketplaces,
in Pakistan’s academic institutions—through and payment providers can enable timely credit,
edutech investments, faculty support, fintech automated collections, and cash-flow tools at scale. By
curriculum integration, and pilot programs? combining data-driven risk assessment with embedded
services, fintechs can transform SME financing and
Nadeem Hussain: We focus on edutech and fintech unlock significant growth for the sector.
literacy initiatives that prepare the next generation of
fintech professionals. Key steps include: ICMA: What steps can fintechs take to expand
financial access for women, youth, and rural
• Investing in digital learning platforms that teach communities in a sustainable way?
hands-on fintech and data-driven skills
Nadeem Hussain: Expanding financial access requires
• Integrating fintech-focused curricula into universities, mobile-first onboarding, localized solutions, and
covering areas like digital payments, BNPL, open
partnerships that reach underserved communities.
banking, and embedded finance Fintechs can:
• Launching pilot programs that demonstrate mobile- • Leverage alternative and non-financial data, such as
first financial services and simulate real-world digital mobile usage, purchase history, and community
transactions behavior, to create accessible credit and savings

• Using anonymized merchant and transaction data to products.
teach credit scoring, risk assessment, and lending • Embed financial services into platforms that women,
models youth, and rural customers already engage with,
These initiatives accelerate the digital transformation of including e-commerce, social commerce, and local
academia and produce industry-ready talent equipped marketplaces.
to power Pakistan’s growing fintech sector.
• Offer micro-credit, savings, and insurance solutions
ICMA: In your view, what is the untapped potential of designed for the specific needs of small households,
fintech in serving SMEs and micro-enterprises across informal workers, and micro-businesses.
Pakistan? • Partner with local ecosystems, such as schools,
Nadeem Hussain: The SME and micro-enterprise cooperatives, and retailers, to improve trust and
sectors remain vastly underbanked, with limited access adoption.
to formal credit and cash-flow management tools. Sustainable financial inclusion comes from data-driven
Fintechs can unlock this potential by leveraging design and embedded services that integrate seamlessly
transaction and behavioral data from digital payments, into daily life, combined with financial literacy initiatives
e-commerce, and supply chain activity to design tailored to ensure long-term usage and impact.
financial solutions.
Opportunities include working capital loans, invoice The Editorial Board thanks Mr. Nadeem Hussain, Founder &
Coach, Planet N Group of Companies and Chairman, Pakistan
discounting, and supply chain finance, delivered
Fintech Association, for sparing his precious time to give an
through embedded finance models integrated into the exclusive interview for Chartered Management Accountant Journal.
platforms SMEs already use for sales, procurement, or

ICMA’s Chartered Management Accountant, Jul-Aug 2025 13