TLDR:
- The Latin American Private Equity and Venture Capital Association reported a liquidity “drought” in Q1 with limited investment exits.
- Brazil’s communications ministry will release resources to support telecom operators in flood-devastated Rio Grande do Sul state.
During the first quarter of 2024, the Latin American Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (Lavca) reported a liquidity “drought” in the region, with high interest rates and pricing gaps affecting investment exits. Fund managers carried out US$2.2bn in exit proceeds across 19 deals in the region during the quarter, following exits totaling US$4.7bn in 2023. Brazil’s communications ministry announced resources from the telecoms universalization fund FUST to support telecom operators in flood-devastated Rio Grande do Sul state. Jeeves, a B2B payments and corporate card platform, closed a US$75mn loan facility with Community Investment Management (CIM), while ACE Ventures reached US$9.72mn at the final close of its seed fund for investment in LatAm startups. Mexican lending fintech Plata secured US$100mn financing from UK-based asset manager Fasanara Capital, and e-commerce brand aggregator Merama secured an US$80mn financing from JP Morgan. Brazil’s data solutions startup Indicium raised US$40mn in a series A round, and Object First, developer of Ootbi, a backup storage device, announced plans to expand in Latin America.
