$110 million in fintech funding (equity)

Hola amig@s fintech,

Exciting news awaits in this week's update! First off, a quick reminder about our upcoming Fintech Trek in Mexico City this October. Don't miss out - apply now. 

Secondly, mark your calendars for Finnosummit Mexico 2023 on September 26 and 27 in Mexico City. It's the perfect opportunity to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, investors, and industry leaders. As a special treat for TWIF subscribers, enjoy a 15% discount using the code FSTHISWEEK.

And that's not all - save the date for the TWIF Latam FINNOSUMMIT Kickoff Mixer on September 25. You won't want to miss this! RSVP here to secure your spot.

Now, it's time to delve into the latest in Latam fintech news. If you're enjoying this content on our website, please consider sharing and subscribing to show your support.

💛 Until next weekend. Até a próxima!

• Lorena

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📊 Stat of the Week

📖  Read of the Week

The digital transformation has led to the development of new concepts within the financial industry; Arjun Vir Singh's  Glossary is an integral resource to expand knowledge and optimize decision-making processes. It includes concepts such as Open Banking (OB), Open Finance (OF), Embedded Finance (EmFi) and Banking as a Service (BaaS).

🦉 Tweet of the Week

💸 Venture Financing

💸Equity

🇧🇷 Cumbuca, the Brazilian digital family group account, raised $3 million in a seed round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Supera Capital. The startup also gained Central Bank approval to operate as a Payment Institution.

🇵🇪 Prestamype, the Peruvian company focused on funding micro and small enterprises, raised a $5 million pre-Series A round led by Acumen Latam Impact Ventures and Oikocredit, with participation from Salkantay Ventures, Inca Ventures, AVP, and other angel investors. 

🇧🇷 Principia, the Brazilian credit solutions company for education institutions, raised a $41million in a series A funding round while also making a strategic acquisition of Provi. The funding of $ 10 million was led by Valor Capital, with participation from ARC Capital, Spectra, Supera, and FJ Labs funds. An additional $31 million was secured through an Investment Fund for Credit Rights.

🇧🇷 Nomad, the Brazilian company providing a US bank account, debit card, and investment access, raised $61 million in a series B funding round, led by Tiger Global Management. The capital infusion includes Stripes, Monashees, and Spark Capital.

🇵🇪 Citi invested in Rextie, the Peruvian currency exchange company, with a focus on driving its international growth. Further details on the transaction remain undisclosed.

🚀 Product Launches & Partnerships

💻 Fintech 

🇲🇽 Clara, the Mexican-born/Brazilian-based solution for corporate payments, launched International Payments which aims to streamline complexities of cross-border transactions. Businesses can now make on-demand payments in major world currencies and use the underlying credit line for up to 40 days.

🇲🇽 Crecy, the Mexican lending app, announced the introduction of a credit card secured by Ethereum. The card enables users to leverage their crypto holdings without liquidation, purchase Mexican pesos with favorable financing terms and with a low-cost structure and global acceptance.

🇦🇷 Ualá, the Argentinian paytech platform, introduced Uilo, its first traditional banking product, marking a step into the banking sector through its merger with digital bank Wilobank. Through this merger, Ualá aims to expand its financial offerings, including savings accounts and prepaid Mastercard, aiming to transform its 5 million virtual accounts into savings accounts.

🇨🇴 Num Finance, the Argentinian platform that helps businesses expand in emerging markets, launched nCOP, a stablecoin linked to the Colombian peso, targeting the remittance market. nCOP aims to tokenize remittances and offer yields in Colombia.

🇧🇴 Yape, the Peruvian mobile payment platform, launched its operations in Bolivia to achieve 2.5 million customers in the first year. The company aims to leverage the growing QR payment ecosystem in Bolivia to significantly increase transactions and the usage of mobile wallets.

🇲🇽 DRUO, the US-based online payment gateway for businesses, announced its entry into Mexico. The company's initial mission is to achieve significant processing volume through their multi-financial entity domiciliation solution.

🇨🇴 Mercado Pago and Siigo, the Colombian accounting and administrative software solution, announced a partnership to offer online payment methods to SMEs in Colombia. They will integrate digital payment options directly into customer-generated invoices.

🇧🇷 Klavi, the Brazilian Open Finance platform, and iFood, the Brazilian delivery app, announced a partnership to empower gig economy workers. This partnership aims to facilitate personalized services and to provide financial institutions with verifiable income data for gig workers.

🌎 TraderPal, the Chilean investment app,  _announced a partnership with Vector Capital, the brokerage services platform, and Voultech, the technological platform, aiming to democratize investment in global financial markets across Latam. 

🏦 Financial Services & Banking

🇨🇱 Credicorp, the Peruvian financial holding, announced the introduction of iO, the country's first neobank for younger customers, offering a digital Visa credit card. It will have features like cashback, biometric security, real-time expense tracking, and exclusive promotions. 

📜 Policy

🇦🇷 The Central Bank of Argentina ruled that virtual wallet providers need to return the extra gains from user investments in Treasury bonds, despite previous regulations allowing fintech companies to retain part of these profits. This applies to uninvested funds in wallets as well. 

🇪🇨 Ecuador’s Monetary Policy and Regulation Board introduced regulations for electronic wallets, ensuring continuous availability of funds and user-customizable transaction limits. The rules apply to authorized entities such as specialized societies for electronic deposits and payments, financial institutions, and permitted financial service auxiliaries. 

🇧🇷 A bill in the Brazilian Congress aims to boost credit portability, and the report by Rep. Santana proposes that consumers can transfer revolving and installment credit debts, even if partially paid. The National Monetary Council (CMN) would regulate this process within 90 days, potentially fostering competition among banks and reducing interest rates. 

🇲🇽 The Mexican Ministry of Finance is hosting the Fintech Week early next week, convening industry players and regulators to engage in conversations on a range of topics, including existing regulations and potential reforms.

📰 Other News 

🇨🇱 CORFO (The Production Development Corporation), the Chilean government agency  to promote economic growth and innovation, announced the launch of "Venture Capital Chile", a platform for foreign investors interested in early-state Chilean funds.

🌐 SoftBank Group Corp sold some of its investments in Latam, such as Pismo, Avenue Holding Cayman, Yaydoo and Isaac. With these sales, it registers an economic benefit given that startups in the region face limited IPOs opportunities. 

🌐 Binance announced that  its debit card, will stop working in Latam because Visa and Mastercard ended their partnerships with Binance Holdings.

🌐 Financial Alliance announced Hackathon 2023, focused on designing smart fintechs to broaden access to the female economy.

📚 Deeper Reads

Latam startups playing 'on hard mode,' fintech and AI with VC

Colombia banks call for measures to help liquidity squeeze

Mexican retailers get into the banking business

Revolut vs. Traditional Banking: Why Fintech is the Future

5 trends in VC funding for pre-seed startups

How to size your VC fund

Made in Latam with 💛 by Elena, Daniela, and Lorena

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