LatAm Tech Weekly
#129- Powered by Nasdaq: Exciting women stats in tech, SaaS returns, deals of the week and much more!
Happy Sunday!
This past Friday, Brazil marked International Women's Day in style. To honor the occasion, let's dive into some encouraging news for women from the tech world. A recent report by Pitchbook, titled 'All In: Female Founders in the VC Ecosystem', has shed some light on a positive trend. It turns out, women founders and co-founders are raking in 27.8% of venture capital funding worldwide, hitting an all-time high. And that's not all – at the GP (General Partner) level, the proportion of female investors wielding the financial power at top VC firms edged up a bit, now sitting at 17.4%.
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Opinions expressed here are solely my own and does not represent those of people, institutions, organizations that I may or may not be associated with in any capacity, unless explicitly stated.
As February comes to a close, let's sift through the latest numbers. In the U.S., we saw the markets keep up their strong performance from the last quarter of 2023. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 both wrapped up February nearly breaking records, climbing 3.9% and 4.0% respectively. The PCI ticked up by 0.4%, right on target with forecasts, reinforcing the expectation that the Fed might start slashing rates as soon as June.
A big slice of this market uptick seems to be driven by the growing excitement around AI and ML technologies. Take Nvidia, for instance – its stock price shot up by a whopping 28.8% last month. Arm Holdings and server guru Super Micro Computer weren't far behind, jumping 98% and 63% month-on-month. This bullish trend is also starting to ripple through the private markets, albeit at a slower pace.
Shifting focus to Latin America, Brazilian startups began the year with impressive momentum, securing a substantial $305 million in investments in January. February experienced a shift, gathering $167 million, which, while lower, reflects the dynamic nature of investment flows. Encouragingly, the wider Latin American region witnessed growth, with Sling Hub's monthly survey highlighting a rise to $482 million in startup investments in February, up 10% from $438 million in January. Brazil continued to lead in the number of investment rounds with 48, demonstrating a vibrant and active startup ecosystem, even as the average investment size saw an uptick.
General news:
Bitcoin rallied to a two-year high on Monday, breaking above $65,000 as a wave of money carried it within striking distance of record levels. The price hit a session high of $65,537 early in Europe, having already hit a new two-year high in Asian trading. It was last up 4% at $65,045. Bitcoin hit a record $68,999.99 in November 2021.
Nvidia Corp. has claimed another milestone by overtaking Saudi Aramco in market value, making the chipmaker the world’s third-most valuable public company after Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp.
The Brazilian Central Bank is preparing a regulation to oversee banking as a service (BaaS) this year. Additionally, the institution is studying the use and impacts of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and tokenization in the financial sector, as well as planning to implement the Definitive Governance Structure for Open Finance. Furthermore, the regulation of the cryptocurrency market is also expected to be released this year.
Coruja Capital, VC firm founded by former Itau Unibanco Marcio Schettini, announced the hire of Ivan de Souza to strengthen its team. Souza led strategy for LatAm in Accenture and was also the CEO at Booz & Company in Brazil.
Atlas Governance, Brazilian startup known for providing technologies focused on corporate governance, will set up tailored boards for companies — without charging for it. The platform, which already serves 40% of the companies listed on B3, aims to expand its addressable market.
Brazilian Onfly launches innovation to become the 'Gympass of travel'. Called OnHappy, the corporate benefits unit could represent up to 30% of revenue in the next two years.
Deals:
Trampay, Brazilian fintech that stood out in the market by launching a financial services app for delivery drivers, has just received a round of R$1.9 million, led by Potência Ventures
General news:
Fleetcor Group, owner of Sem Parar, announced the acquisition of controlling stake in Zapay, a fintech focused on vehicle owners. Details such as the value of the deal and the size of the company's equity stake in the startup were not disclosed.
PicPay, a Brazilian fintech with 35 million active customers, is implementing the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in customer service, in one of the first use cases of its kind worldwide. The implementation has started for a small portion of customers and is expected to be available to the entire user base by the end of this month.
In his inaugural policy update, André Chaves, the Senior Vice President of Mercado Pago in Brazil, has announced an enhancement in the returns for the institution's interest-bearing accounts. Effective immediately, individual account holders who deposit or receive payments of R$ 1,000 or greater will now accrue interest at a rate of 105% of the CDI, a notable increase from the previous rate of 100% of the CDI which was in effect until February. This improved interest rate offer is exclusively available to individual account holders and does not extend to business accounts.
NG.CASH, Brazil's largest digital account for Generation Z, relocates headquarters to São Paulo. Experiencing exponential growth, the fintech currently boasts over 2 million users across all regions of Brazil.
Deals:
Oxygea announces the investment of R$4.5 million in three startups, LogShare, Embeddo, and GrowPack, as part of its inaugural Oxygea Labs investment program. This initiative underscores Oxygea's commitment to fostering sustainability and digital transformation in the industrial sector. Each startup, receiving R$1.5 million, is recognized for its potential to revolutionize their respective fields.
FinanZero, the country's largest online credit marketplace, has just closed a media for equity deal with 4Equity, a company that enables startups to gain media exposure in exchange for equity participation. With the transaction, 4Equity acquires a minority stake of R$20 million in the company founded by Olle Widén, Kristian Jacobsson, and Webrock Ventures, maintaining the same valuation as previous rounds.
The Colombian fintech Yuno has announced a new move, raising a $25 million Series A round. The investment came from a group of investors, including some existing ones, such as DST Global Partners, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Tiger Global, Kaszek Ventures, and Monashees.
Colmeia, a startup specializing in digital customer service automation, has just raised R$ 25 million from Crescera Capital, giving it the firepower to execute its plan to triple in size this year. The funding round valued the startup at over R$ 100 million post-money.
Fleetcor Group, owner of Sem Parar, announced the acquisition of controlling stake in Zapay, a fintech focused on vehicle owners. Details such as the value of the deal and the size of the company's equity stake in the startup were not disclosed.
BlueCyber, Brazilian developer of a digital platform designed to focus on insurance and assistance for personal and family digital protection raised USD 1.5mm from Bossanova Investimentos.
General news:
CloudWalk, a fintech specializing in payment solutions and owner of the InfinitePay platform, has expanded its horizons beyond Brazil. After establishing a presence across 100% of Brazilian territory, the company is now setting its sights on its first international destination. Furthermore, CloudWalk’s achievement of $320.5 million in revenue and $22.3 million in profits for 2023 highlights its successful year marked by a 41% revenue increase and its transition into profitability.
Omie, a cloud-based management platform (ERP), starts 2024 by hiring new leaders for three of its main strategic revenue-generating areas – Franchises, Growth Marketing, and Financial Services. Daniel Rosa, Davi Holanda, and Renato Junoy join to accelerate projects aimed at scalability and profitability.
Deals:
Nextron, Brazilian climate tech company that connects renewable energy generators to consumers through subscriptions, has just received a Series A round of R$ 26 million. Announced nearly two years after the R$ 11.5 million seed round, the investment was led by Vox Capital and Copel Ventures, with participation from Endeavor Scale-up Ventures and follow-on investments from investors such as Valor Capital Group and Barn Investimentos.
General News:
Itau Unibanco is the first bank to fully integrate with Brazil’s federal government program Desenrola.
Andreessen Horowitz Eyes $6.9 Billion for AI and More in Massive Fundraising Push. This ambitious fundraise aims to fuel a diverse portfolio, with a significant focus on artificial intelligence, per sources.
Deals:
Copybase, a martech specializing in artificial intelligence to support agencies and companies in marketing content production, raises its first institutional round, securing R$ 1 million from DOMO.VC. With this cash infusion, the company's plan is to further develop its sales structure and bolster its development team with senior talent.
Kravata, Colombian develioper of crypto platform designed to safely buy and sell crypto raised USD 3.6mm with Circle Ventures, Framework Ventures and Volt Capital.
General News:
Marvin, a B2B payments fintech, has a new COO. Gustavo Carvalho, former Bain & Company executive, joins the company to translate senior management's vision into action plans for teams, as well as to support the development of products aligned with the company's strategy.
VERT Capital, founded in 2016 by three partners - Fernanda Mello, Victoria de Sá, and Martha de Sá - has just obtained a license as a distributor of securities and securities (DTVM) from regulators. Since its foundation in 2016, VERT has issued over R$ 57 billion in 270 transactions, covering FIDC, CRA, CRI, and securitization debentures.
Already at breakeven, Primefy grows in Brazil and expands into the LatAm market. The fintech now serves an additional 2,000 clients in Brazil, ranging from startups to major companies such as Cubo Itaú and G4 Educação
What did I learn from readers?
I received a very good report from a reader who is a SaaS investor. Pitchbook’s Early-stage SaaS boasts best expected exit success rate for VCs has good data on SaaS exits and returns.
SaaS has become a key focus for venture capitalists due to its efficient, capital-light models with high profit margins. PitchBook's research, using a machine learning-enabled VC Exit Predictor, indicates that SaaS is expected to outperform other tech sectors in future returns. The report shows early-stage SaaS companies are projected to have annualized returns 5.5% higher than the average across ten tech verticals, an increase from 3.2% in 2017.
Despite external factors like interest rates and economic cycles impacting overall VC investment returns, SaaS still stands out. The expected success rate for early-stage SaaS firms is notably high, with a 78.2% chance of a successful exit, primarily through M&A or public listings, significantly higher than other tech sectors.
Prominent SaaS companies like Databricks, Stripe, and Gusto are being closely watched for potential IPOs. Despite some setbacks in the software market, like failed M&A deals, analysts foresee a strong year ahead for software acquisitions. M&A is a common exit strategy for SaaS companies, offering opportunities not as prevalent in sectors like foodtech and agtech.
While 2023 saw a decline in pre-money valuations and capital invested in early-stage SaaS, this hasn't deterred investors or affected hiring within the sector, with SaaS showing strong payroll growth and consistent investment interest.
What am I reading?
What am I listening to? What am I watching?
Netflix Documentary: Bad Surgeon — a must watch!
Quote of the week:
"Seja a mulher que você sempre sonhou, em não tenha medo disso" - Unknown
"Be the woman you've always dreamed of being, and don't be afraid of it." - Unknown