• Iraq-based q-commerce Padash has raised $125,000 in a pre-seed funding from an undisclosed angel investor. 
• Founded in 2023 by Ahmed Jamal, Omer Sabah, Muhammed Yassein, and Ahmed Bayiz, Padash is a platform for instant food and grocery delivery,
• The investment will be used to help Padash expand its operations within Erbil city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and further develop its mobile app.

Source: Iraqi Innovators

Padash, an Iraq-based instant food and grocery delivery startup, has raised $125,000 in pre-seed funding from an undisclosed angel investor. The investment will be used to help Padash expand its operations within Erbil city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and further develop its mobile application to provide instant delivery services to the majority of the city. This marks the seventh investment into an Iraqi startup this year which is almost double the number of investments from 2023.

Founded in 2023 by Ahmed Jamal and his three co-founders, Omer Sabah, Muhammed Yassein, and Ahmed Bayiz, Padash’s mission is to revolutionise the delivery market in Iraq by offering an instant food and grocery delivery app. The platform allows consumers to order from their local stores and receive their orders in less than 20 minutes, and sometimes even as fast as 5 minutes.

“This funding marks a significant milestone for Padash as we work towards transforming the way people in Iraq access food and groceries. We understand the growing demand for quick and reliable delivery services, and we’re excited to expand our operations within Erbil to meet this need. Our goal is to not only make instant delivery accessible to everyone, but also making it 50% more affordable for users, making this convenience and quality of life accessible for more people,” says Ahmed Jamal, co-founder and CEO of Padash

Padash is already operational in four blocks in Erbil city. With this investment, the company plans to expand its instant delivery service to cover the majority of Erbil city, enabling more consumers to benefit from fast and convenient delivery of food and groceries. The team also plans to enhance its mobile application to improve user experience and streamline the ordering process, preparing for their launch in Baghdad, the capital city of Iraq, next year.

This is the second startup for the founding team, following their previous venture Kurdivia, a live-trivia gaming app in Iraq that garnered 1.5 million downloads and 750,000 monthly active users before shutting down due to challenges with the business model.

“We’ve learned valuable lessons from our previous venture, and we’re confident that Padash addresses a real market need that we learned first hand working with more than 100 restaurants, cafes, and supermarkets. With the support of our investor, we’re poised to make a significant impact on the daily lives of people in Erbil and eventually across Iraq,” Ahmed Jamal said.