Zariah: the startup that wants to make it easy to invest in gold from Rs500

Entrepreneur Adil Saleem has a mission: to help Pakistanis invest in gold. To this end he is gearing up to launch a startup called Zariah, Pakistan’s “first” digital gold savings platform.

It will allow Pakistanis to invest in 24 karat physical gold, starting from Rs.500. The platform will also track real-time market prices, allow users to redeem gold at anytime, and automate savings through round-ups (which means purchases are automatically rounded up to the nearest rupee, and the extra change is saved or invested for the user.)

All gold will be stored in bank-grade vaults, is 100% backed and fully auditable, the company said.

In an exclusive talk with Business Recorder, Saleem — who has previously worked at independent investment advisor Lumida Wealth in New York and equity hedge fund Fountainhead Partnerships in Singapore — said Zariah is currently “pre-launch and we’re working towards introducing it soon.”

The company is exploring discussions with strategic partners and investors who share its vision, though it is not sharing any fundraising details publicly at this stage.

‘Gold savings remain fragmented, informal, and unsafe’

When asked what gap in Pakistan’s financial ecosystem convinced him to launch a digital gold savings platform, he said: “every Pakistani household understands the value of saving yet for decades, our financial system hasn’t made it easy or rewarding for ordinary people to save in safe, accessible ways.”

According to him, Pakistan’s domestic savings rate is among the lowest in the region, at just 7% of GDP, and less than 1% of Pakistanis invest through regulated capital markets.

In the absence of accessible formal options, households have turned to gold, the most familiar and culturally trusted savings vehicle, with annual demand exceeding 40 tonnes (~₨1.4 trillion, or ~USD 5 billion) according to World Gold Council, he said.

“However, the problem is that gold savings remain fragmented, informal, and unsafe. Most households store gold at home or rely on unregulated dealers, exposing them to theft, fraud, and inefficiency.“

“By contrast, we’ve seen real innovation in other asset classes: REITs and fractional ownership are reshaping real estate, new platforms like Finqalab are modernizing stock investing, and fintech wallets such as NayaPay and SadaPay are digitizing payments for millions.”

“Gold, however, has remained untouched by meaningful digitalization. For a country where gold is already the dominant household savings asset, this gap is striking,” he said.

“Our vision is to make gold safer and more accessible while equipping Pakistan with modern savings tools that help the country catch up with global financial innovation.”

The importance of trust

Financial scams and informal saving channels are common in Pakistan, and building trust is key to success in such a venture.

Saleem agrees. “Trust is the foundation of Zariah. We know Pakistanis have been burned.“

“From day one, we’ve focused on designing Zariah to operate within the formal financial system, ensuring that customer savings are always protected and backed by real gold. This means transparent pricing, daily reconciliation of our vault, and partnerships only with credible, established institutions.

By combining these safeguards with an accessible digital experience, we aim to give Pakistanis the peace of mind they’ve been missing in gold savings - knowing that every rupee saved is secure, transparent, and fully accounted for.”

When asked if Zariah will evolve beyond gold, he said the startup is “at its core a vision for digital savings in Pakistan.”

“Gold is the natural starting point because it is trusted, familiar, and already the country’s most widely used savings asset. Our immediate focus is on building depth and scale in gold before expanding further.”

Silver is also on the company’s roadmap, although Saleem thinks the market for it is smaller.

“Over time, we see opportunities to introduce other Shariah-compliant savings and investment options.”

Importance of accessibility

Talking about the fact that Pakistanis will be able to start investing from Rs500 through Zariah, Saleem said accessibility is one of the company’s core principles.

“Traditional gold savings are tied to large denominations such as a gram, a tola, or more, which makes them out of reach for many. We have broken that barrier by enabling savings from as little as Rs. 500.”

“This means anyone, from a student to a salaried professional, can begin their savings journey without waiting to accumulate large sums. It is a simple and inclusive way to make Pakistan’s most trusted savings asset accessible to everyone.”

No perfect time to invest in gold?

As of October 6, at the time of writing, gold prices in Pakistan had climbed new peaks, in line with their increase in the international rates. In the local market, gold price per tola reached Rs415,278 after a single-day rise of Rs5,400.

Talking about the “right” time to invest in gold, Saleem is of the opinion that “gold is often misunderstood as a trade to be timed. In reality, it is a structural savings asset that provides a hedge against inflation, rupee depreciation, and global uncertainty.”

“Even at record highs, the logic for gold has only strengthened.”

He said globally, central banks are buying nearly 1,000 tonnes a year, raising gold’s share of reserves to its highest level in 30 years. China’s households are moving into gold as their housing market slows, while India’s cultural demand continues to rise.

“Against the backdrop of US policy uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and geopolitical risk, gold is increasingly seen as a vote of no confidence in paper currencies.”

“For Pakistanis, the takeaway is clear. With inflation eroding rupee savings, gold remains one of the few reliable ways to protect wealth.”

He explained that since 1995, gold has returned a 15.7% CAGR in rupee terms, slightly ahead of the KSE-100’s 15.2%, but with far lower volatility and a stronger return per unit of risk.

“That is why the smarter approach is not to chase highs or lows but to build a disciplined savings habit in gold. The earlier one starts, the better protected they are against long-term volatility.”

When asked if he has any predictions for the price of gold, Saleem said “we do not make price forecasts because gold is not about speculation, it is about long-term protection.”

But he did note that some analysts have projected that gold could approach $4,000 per ounce by 2025, “which would translate to roughly ₨430,000 per tola if the rupee holds steady and even higher if it weakens.”

As far as he is concerned, though, for Pakistanis, investing in gold should not be about “chasing a headline number”.

“The lesson is that gold is being re-priced as both a reserve asset and a household hedge. The smarter approach is to save consistently over time rather than trying to time peaks and dips.”

His advice for someone looking to invest is first to understand that “gold’s real value is as a long-term store of wealth. It protects savings against inflation, rupee depreciation, and global uncertainty, which is why it has remained such a trusted asset for generations.”

“My advice is to start early, start small, and stay consistent. Even modest contributions build up over time, and thinking in grams rather than tolas makes gold accessible to everyone.”

Zariah is not yet live, but Saleem says even at the pre-launch stage the response has been very encouraging. Through surveys and a growing waitlist, he says he has seen strong interest, particularly from millennials and young professionals.

“A clear trend is that Pakistanis increasingly prefer to save in smaller, more manageable amounts instead of making large one-off investments. This shows a strong appetite for solutions that make saving easier, safer, and more accessible to everyone.”