Muzmatch: the dating application changing the way in which Muslims find love. Safety is vital for any other reasons.
Shahzad Younas’s Muslim hot russian brides dating software assisted 15,000 partners meet to get hitched. He informs Amelia Heathman about contemporary love
- Amelia Heathman
- Thursday 25 July 2019 13:59
The expression goes: ‘Muslims don’t date, we marry’, ” claims Shahzad Younas, creator and CEO of this Muslim matching software Muzmatch. “It’s a generalised expression but it strikes the nail regarding the mind. If I’m fulfilling a lady, we’re both reasoning, is this individual wedding product? ”
Muzmatch is usually dubbed the Muslim Tinder but Younas is certainly not therefore satisfied with the contrast.
It utilizes some typical dating-app structures, such as for example swipes and likes, but alternatively of centering on casual hook-ups it’s all about helping Muslims find you to definitely marry.
Many Muslims are required to marry young and also to somebody associated with the exact same faith. Choices consist of dealing with a matchmaker, which computer technology graduate Younas defines as “like getting your CV passed around” to locate a suitable partner. Therefore it ended up being back in 2014, after hearing their buddies swap tales about dating battles, which he chose to produce an application that will make the dating process more “halal” — acceptable in religious legislation.
Younas quit their task as a good investment banker and invested half a year working days that are 18-hour create Muzmatch in the room. 6 months after starting, the software had produced its very very first wedding.
“A few got in contact to state ‘thank you, we got hitched due to your app’. I happened to be like, OK, this can be real, ” he said. The outcome talk on their own: Muzmatch has several. 5 million users plus some 15,000 partners ‘ve got married after fulfilling onto it.
It produced title it me you’re looking for? For it self away from Muslim community because of an advertising campaign that went in the Tube a year ago featuring Lionel Richie singing: “Halal, is” with regards to rivals, the application ranks higher for packages compared to other religious-focused matching apps including JSwipe (Jewish) and Salt (Christian), relating to analytics business App Annie, so it’s not surprising the big dating organizations came knocking.
Younas won’t mention who, but claims he has turned them straight down everytime. “We’re on an objective to change how Muslims across the world think of marriage, to get married. ”
Plenty of work switches into making certain Muzmatch is a safe room for Muslims to chat and fulfill on the web. In 2016, the working platform introduced selfie verification to make certain everyone else in the application is whom they state they have been. The business features a group in Bangladesh which, alongside its HQ in Aldgate, manually moderates every profile.
Other privacy features are embedded. Users can request a chaperone be there in conversations in the software, such as for instance a relative, as per an Islamic principle that whenever unmarried both women and men chat a 3rd party should show up. Users may also make sure they’ve no profile image on the account or details such as for example their name that is full they may be as personal online as you possibly can. “It’s about knowing that Muslims are incredibly diverse and then we don’t wish to force individuals down a particular road. You want to function as space that is safe offer top-level privacy to the users, ” says Younas.
Security is vital for any other reasons.
“We get lots of EDL kinds and people that are right-wing you plenty of abuse — putting up Bin Laden images and all sorts of that sort of stuff, ” claims Younas. “The positive thing is they get spotted quickly and eliminated so we can block those users in a permanent means. ” From the upside, Muzmatch comes with non-Muslims registering because they’re interested in learning the faith, such the 50-plus guy who transformed into Islam after fulfilling some body regarding the software. “The peoples tales can be pressing. We’re wanting to tread that type of being available but equally being faithful to our community. It’s a tricky line to walk down but We think we’ve nailed it. ”
Therefore what’s next? The start-up has accomplished profitability as a result of its premium paid-for tier however the next stage is to continue to enhance the software and its own features, and expand the group and its particular reach. “Purely for a figures foundation, one-fifth around the globe is Muslim, ” claims Younas. “On top of the, we estimate there are about 400 million Muslims that are solitary and qualified. We have a look at that, and we’ve not really produced dent. ”
To aid Muzmatch in its objective, the start-up has now announced the close of a large show A capital round for $7m. Investors included respected Silicon accelerator that is valley-based Combinator – Younas participated when you look at the programme back in 2017 – also as Luxor Capital.
“Shahzad has demonstrably made a thing that individuals want, ” states Tim Brady, somebody at Y Combinator. “He is really a founder that is resourceful happens to be playing their users as well as in the method is promoting a great solution for the Muslim community, in a fashion that conventional businesses have actually neglected to do. “
Beyond bringing individuals together, Younas additionally really wants to alter attitudes into the Muslim world to ensure that marriage is approached in a contemporary method. “My vision is the fact that whenever Muslims across the world think of engaged and getting married Muzmatch pops into the mind — plus it feels as though a clear, non-taboo action to take, ” he states. “I always think Muslims are five years behind the conventional, specially when it comes down to technology. Now it is time in order for them to get up. ”