The National Incubation Center and Jazz Xlr8 Successfully Organized And Conducted Another Exciting Event Under Their Flagship Project Hacktivate, This Time To Find Innovative And Disruptive Fin-Tech Solutions.
The two-day event, which featured a hackathon in which shortlisted Fintech startups and SMEs pitched their ideas to a panel of judges, and an Innovation Challenge in which participants used ABL’s Open Banking APIs to build solutions on the ABL developer portal, was powered by Allied Bank Limited as a core partner and sponsor. This was one of the largest virtual events in the Fintech field on a national scale, with a number of partners joining forces with the event organisers.

Allied Bank Limited (Core Partner) sponsored cash prizes for winners worth PKR 2 million, Jubilee Life Insurance (Silver Partner); Ignite, Jazz xlr8, Ministry of IT and Telecom, Next Wallet, TIE Islamabad Chapter, and NIC Karachi as Integration Partners; ACCA, Pakistan Fin-Tech Association, Daftarkhwan, and TMUC as Community Partners; ACCA, Pakistan Fin-Tech Association, Daftarkhwan, and
“Seeing how numerous stakeholders, in various capacities, have joined hands with the National Incubation Center in its simple endeavour to stimulate innovation and generate revolutionary solutions throughout sectors warms my heart with joy.

The global Fin-tech sector was valued at USD 5504.13 billion in 2019, with a CAGR of 23.58 percent predicted from 2020 to 2025. The substantial investment in technology-based solutions by banks and businesses is a crucial element in the fintech market’s growth. “Innovation has always been at the heart of how Jazz operates, and this Fin-tech hackathon is another step in that direction, where Pakistan’s brightest minds battled to solve Fin-Tech difficulties. To effectively disrupt the Fin-Tech market and reduce inequities in financial inclusion, we need concentrated initiatives in this field.” Jazz’s Chief Digital & Strategy Officer, Aamer Ejaz

More than 300 applications were received from Africa, Finland, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and 20+ locations across Pakistan for the event, which was organised with the goal of bringing creative ideas in the Fin-tech field to the forefront. Applicants were asked to submit concepts that fit into one of the topic categories below, which were developed after comprehensive research on the sector’s dynamics and interaction with renowned experts in the field:
Infrastructure Alternative 

• Funding 
• Banking 
• Asset Management 
• Finance for the Environment
• Other Insurance Industry Propositions

A total of 24 ideas were shortlisted for the Hackathon component of the event. This segment consisted of two rounds. After the first round was completed successfully, the top eight concepts competed in the Grand Finale. After a difficult competition judged by a powerful panel of judges including financial institutions, insurance businesses, the corporate sector, and entrepreneur support organisations, the top three winners received cash rewards worth Rs. 1.4 million (ESOs). DigiKhata (1st place), BayFikr (2nd place), and Ozoned Digital & E-Khata (3rd place) were the winners of the Hackathon (3rd position). The ABL Innovation Challenge, the second stage of the tournament, was won by DigiKhata.

All people need access to regulated financial services, and in countries like Pakistan, where more than 100 million individuals are unbanked, guaranteeing financial inclusion is a huge issue. This gives a chance for young innovators to develop new solutions that will help fintech services become more widely used. Allied Bank Limited’s Chief Digital Officer, Sohail Aziz

In addition to the monetary awards, the event winners will be eligible for a position in the Jazz xlr8 Program. They will also have the opportunity to meet with important stakeholders, such as investors, public sector representatives, and mentors, in order to put their ideas into practise, and to scale up with the help of funders and acceleration partners. Participants will also learn about the USAID Small Medium Enterprise Activity (SMEA) project, through which they may be eligible for co-funding for Business Development Services (BDS) if they meet the project’s eligibility criteria.

The National Incubation Center would like to express its gratitude to all of its partners, mentors, and judges who contributed to the event’s success by providing invaluable insights into the Fin-tech space to both the organisers and participants, allowing the initiative to have a significant impact. The event will be followed by a full report on the sector’s dynamics and the role of startups in introducing current methods and approaches for the sector’s and country’s progressive growth.