Venture capital fintech investment in Latin America 2016-2022

In 2022, the value of venture capital investments targeted at fintech startups in Latin America amounted to roughy 3.34 billion U.S. dollars, a sharp decrease compared to the previous year. In the five years before the COVID-19 pandemic, venture investments in financial technology grew by around 690 percent.

What is venture capital?

Venture capital can be defined as any financial resources provided by investors to fund small and medium-sized businesses that show potential for long-term growth. It also represents one of the best sources of capital for nascent entrepreneurs that usually have problems accessing traditional financial alternatives, due to the high risk that new companies pose.

Venture Capital in numbers

In 2020, venture capital investments in Latin America reached approximately 4.1 billion U.S. dollars, value almost 3,000 percent higher than the one reported in 2011. Brazil concentrated more than half of the investments, mostly thanks to the innovative and promising business created there in the last years. In 2019, 230 startups headquartered in the South American country received venture investments, from which Nubank stands out for being the first Latin American company to reach decacorn status.