The monthly Venture Capital report produced by Distrito, specialized platform for AI implementation projects for corporations in Latin America, registered 42 rounds of investments, totaling an amount of US$ 555,4 million, the largest volume of the year. The result of October was driven by the fundraising of the Brazilian fintech Asaas.
The result from last month represented a 27% increase compared to the same period in 2023, when startups raised US$ 437,2 million in 70 deals, points to the District. Alone, the Brazilian Asaas, that is focused on offering complete digital accounts, raised US$ 150 million, practically ¼ of the total volume collected. The round was led by Bond, with investors Softbank and 23S Capital.
Another highlight of the month was Brazil, that was losing ground to markets like Mexico and Colombia. Investments in Brazil totaled US$ 355,1 million in 25 rounds mapped in October, what did 59 represent,5% of the rounds and 63,9% of the volume invested in the region.
"The fundraising by Asaas is the largest carried out this year in Latin America". Although this volume distorts the overall data somewhat, the round shows that there is an appetite from investors to write larger checks for stories that make sense in the region. This investment also demonstrates the strength of the fintech sector in the region,"explains Gustavo Gierun, co-founder and CEO of Distrito.
During the month, the Pre-Seed registered 26deals with US$ 26,9 million and the Early Stage (Seed and Series A) had 12 rounds and US$ 73,7 million. The Late-Stage has accounted for 4 rounds and US$ 280 million in investments. The private equity entered in just one round of $150 million. Regarding the average ticket of the stages, the largest concentration is in Late-Stage with US$ 70 million; next, Early-Stage reached US$ 6,1 million; and, finally, the Pre-Seed, with US$1 million.
Main sectors in Latin America
The sectors of startups with the highest level of fundraising were fintechs with US$ 399,7 million, that maintains performance in Latin America, through Brazil and the growing presence of Mexico in the finance sector. Next, the agribusiness segment reached US$ 53 million. Finally, as foodtechs, with US$ 51 million that surpassed traditional areas of higher investments for the second consecutive month, like healthtechs.
An example of this is Justo, Mexican foodtech that raised US$ 50 million in October in a Series C investment round led by General Atlantic, in addition to another US$ 20 million in debt financing with HSBC. A startup demonstrates the trend in Latin America of investments directed towards marketplace platforms and digital services.
M&As in Latin America
The study of the District also highlights merger and acquisition activities, which pointed out 13 M&As carried out in the Latin American startup ecosystem, being 10 acquisitions and one merger. The value is similar to the number of M&As in October 2023, which also recorded 13 transactions, and is also below the monthly average for 2024, what is 16 M&As.
The acquisitions were mainly of fintechs (5) and deeptechs (2). Deeptechs have been emerging repeatedly as one of the most acquired sectors of the year due to the boost from artificial intelligence.
