$5 million in equity will promote expansion of technology start-up accelerator model

(Press Release) The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, has approved a $5 million equity investment and $750,000 in technical cooperation assistance to support the expansion of NXTP Labs, a regional accelerator for technology start-ups.

NXTP Labs, which is adapting Silicon Valley’s Y Combinator and TechStars models for Latin America, offers start-ups seed funding and an acceleration program for entrepreneurs who want to start digital, mobile and technology businesses in Latin America.

With the MIF’s support, NXTP Labs will scale up its model, which supports regional and international “demo days” (demonstration days) events that allows entrepreneurs supported by the fund to present their projects to potential investors. Part of the technical cooperation will finance specific actions to support women entrepreneurs in the NXTP Labs portfolio, with the goal of doubling the number of women in their portfolio.

The project will benefit will be approximately 750 business owners and an estimated 200-250 start-ups in the region’s digital, mobile and technology sectors.

“With our support, NXTP Labs will reach many more entrepreneurs in a shorter time,” said MIF senior investment officer Susana Garcia-Robles, one of the project leaders. “With this project, we hope to encourage the creation of a more dynamic entrepreneurial culture in which entrepreneurs can take risks without being stigmatized if their first attempts fail.”