TLDR:
- Latin American startups raised US$2.18bn in investments in the first half of the year.
- Chilean remittances-focused fintech Retorna raised US$1.2mn in a seed round led by Impacta VC.
In the first half of 2024, Latin American startups saw a significant increase in investments, with a total of US$2.18bn raised, marking a 41% increase from the same period in 2023. Brazilian startups led the way, accounting for over US$928mn of the total raised. The Distrito platform report highlighted the rise in late-stage deals and heated transactions involving fintechs as key drivers of this growth. Additionally, there were 118 M&A deals involving LatAm startups, with fintechs, deeptechs, and retailtechs leading the way.
One standout deal was the seed funding raised by Chilean remittances-focused fintech Retorna, which secured US$1.2mn in a round led by LatAm-focused fund Impacta VC. This funding will be used for customer acquisition and retention as the fintech continues to facilitate money transfers between countries through fast, secure, and low-rate transactions. Interestingly, this is Impacta VC’s ninth startup investment to date.
Another notable development was Mexico’s Ximple securing US$2.7mn in a pre-seed round to expand its digital financial services. The funding round saw the participation of several investors, including Clocktower Technology Ventures and BoostCapital Partners. Ximple, based in Mexico City, provides a digital tool to offer credit access to families and entrepreneurs excluded from traditional financial systems due to lack of proof of income and credit history.
Additionally, there was news of fintech unicorn Stori pledging investments of US$380mn in Mexico over the next two years. This commitment was announced by Mexican foreign minister Alicia Bárcena during an event with Stori founder Marlene Garayzar. Stori offers financial products and services to over 2.7mn Mexicans and was the first fintech in the sector created and led by a woman. In 2022, Stori reached unicorn status after raising an additional US$150mn.
These are just a few highlights from the vibrant world of startup funding, fintech deals, and venture capital moves in Latin America in the first half of 2024.
