LATAM Fintech | 2021 #9
Hi, there! Welcome back to another LATAM Fintech Newsletter. In this newsletter, I cover all the major news related to LATAM Fintech. Thank you for subscribing!
ARTICLE
The evolution of the Fintech industry in Colombia is growing by leaps and bounds.
The rise in recent years has been satisfactory for this business that currently continues to open possibilities to Colombians who do not have access to the traditional financial system.
In fact, Colombia’s fintech ecosystem is one of the most dynamic and exceeded 322 companies, ranking third in the region, after Brazil and Mexico, according to the Fintank 2020 Sector Report.
👉 Read more here.
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF THE LATEST NEWS IN LATAM
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Brazil’s digital bank Nubank said Berkshire Hathaway Inc. agreed to buy $500 million of its shares, as digital banking expands quickly in Latin America’s largest economy.
The investment is accompanied by another, $250 million deal that includes various domestic and foreign investors, Nu said.
The São Paulo-based, privately held firm operates via its Nubank brand. It is the largest FinTech in Latin America and one of the largest in the world, with 40 million users in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia, the company said.
It has raised around $2 billion since its inception in 2013, Nu said.
👉 Read more here.
BRAZIL
Funds managed by Advent International are investing $430 million in the Brazilian payments company EBANX, financing its growth in Latin America ahead of an initial public offering planned for the coming months.
CEO and co-founder João Del Valle said the company plans to use the proceeds from acquisitions to further expand operations in countries such as Mexico, Colombia, and Argentina.
👉 Read more here.
Nubank announced a second extension to its Series G round of US$250M led by Sands Capital Ventures and with the participation of a renowned list of technology, emerging markets, and financial services investors, including Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), MSA Capital and Sunley House Capital (an affiliate of Advent International).
👉 Read more here.
BS2 Hub Bank, aiming to become the first B2B neobank in Brazil, has announced the acquisition of the FinTech WEEL, a B2B online lender focused on financing Brazilian companies.
Founded in 2015, WEEL is a data and credit FinTech that specializes in solutions for small and medium-sized companies.
Its mission is to transform the financial reality of companies through technology so that they use time in their favor. The company uses machine-learning (ML) technology to create optimized credit solutions for SMEs.
👉 Read more here.
COLOMBIA
The all-Colombian neobank called IrisBank launched publicly, seeking to “transform the way of serving the business segment, leaving behind handling fees and complex processes, and implementing real and measurable solutions such as month-to-month cost reduction” in banking fees.
IRIS by Financiera Dann Regional calls itself the first neobank focused on the corporate and business sector born in Colombia.
👉 Read more here.
ARGENTINA
Argentina’s Central Bank (BCRA) began an investigation of nine FinTech companies for allegedly offering unauthorized financial intermediation through crypto-assets.
The companies convert deposits into crypto-assets, particularly cryptocurrencies, the BCRA claimed in a statement on Friday.
These crypto-assets are used to finance both investments and consumer finance, offering a profit as a counterparty.
👉 Read more here.
MEXICO
Mexican payments start-up Clip has received a $250 million investment led by the SoftBank Latin America Fund and Viking Global Investors LP. The fintech claims the investment is the largest ever for a payments company in Mexico and pushes the company’s valuation up to nearly $2 billion.
Clip CEO and founder Adolfo B. says the investment will allow the company to “continue to grow aggressively”. Clip’s current list of investors also includes General Atlantic, Ribbit Capital, Goldman Sachs, and Amex Ventures among others.
👉 Read more here.
Monterrey, Mexico-based Kredi raised $3.1 million in seed funding to enable Mexicans — and eventually people all over Latin America — who want to be homeowners, to access the best mortgage rate and terms.
Amplo led the oversubscribed seed round and was joined by Liquid2, Soma Capital, Harvard Management Company, Emles Venture Partners, and a group of angel investors.
👉 Read more here.
This ends my weekly LATAM fintech newsletter. Thank you for reading to the end! If you liked it, I invite you to like, share and/or leave a comment below.
Don’t forget to follow my LATAM Fintech LinkedIn page, dedicated exclusively to LATAM fintech news, below:
Let me know if there are any questions or news/insights worth mentioning in next week's newsletter. Until the next!
Regards,
Marcel van Oost
Follow me on Twitter, Linkedin, and Telegram.
Discover other newsletters by MVO.