Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted his delight on Friday at the news of $85m investment in Pakistani-led company Airlift.

As reported by Bloomberg on Wednesday, the Lahore-based online shopping delivery firm raised $85 million in Series B financing "co-led by Harry Stebbings from 20VC and Josh Buckley from Buckley Ventures Ltd., with participation from former Y Combinator president Sam Altman. That would be the largest-ever round for a Pakistani startup, according to a data tracker from venture capitalist fund Invest2Innovate."

Airlift co-founder Usman Gul said in the interview that Pakistan was “in the very early stages, but the transformation is happening very, very quickly and we are seeing a shift in behavior."

The report also said Pakistani startups, "the bulk of which are focused on e-commerce, raised a record $101 million in the first half of this year compared with $66 million in all of 2020" citing Invest2Innovate as their source.

Airlift switched direction during the pandemic when they went from ride sharing to e-commerce in September, offering shipment in 30 minute windows.

Bloomberg reported the fund raise "is equal to the entire amount raised by Pakistani startups in the first half of the year. It also eclipses the largest initial public offering by the nation’s private sector."

Many people took to Twitter to congratulate the company.