LAVCA members can log in and download an accompanying LAVCA Data Pack for 2021 fundraising and disclosed closings; exit totals and highlighted exits; all disclosed transactions, sortable by stage, sector and HQ; stage analysis for the major markets; and sector breakouts with year-over-year growth.

Venture capital as a share of overall private capital investment also rose to 54%, compared to 25% in 2020. Latin America also registered record-setting listings in 2021 on Brazil’s B3, NYSE and NASDAQ, including Nubank, dLocal, GetNinjas and VTEX. As the ongoing pace of venture investment activity spills over to 2022, private capital investors and operators in Latin America remain vigilant to the current public market environment both locally and abroad.

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IN THIS REPORT

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UNICORN ROUNDS

Sixteen startups surpassed USD1b+ in disclosed valuation in 2021: Bitso, CargoX, Clara, Clip, CloudWalk, Facily, Konfio, olist, MadeiraMadeira, Merama, Mercado Bitcoin, MURAL, NotCo, Tiendanube/Nuvemshop, Ualá and unico.

Notably, four Mexico-based startups surpassed USD1b in disclosed valuation in 2021, following Kavak in 2020: Bitso, Clara, Clip and Konfio.

In February 2022, insurtech Betterfly became the second Chilean startup to surpass USD1b in disclosed valuation, after NotCo reached the same milestone in 2021. Separately, Chile-based Cornershop sold to Uber in 2021 at a ~USD3b disclosed valuation.

View LAVCA’s Unicorn Leaderboard for the latest list of LatAm unicorns.

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INVESTMENTS OVER USD250M

An increase in late stage rounds propelled Latin American VC to multiples of the previous record in 2019. Startups raised 12 late stage rounds over USD250m, compared to one in 2020 (Rappi’s USD300m investment from T. Rowe Price). Startups raised 44 disclosed rounds over USD100m, compared to 10 in 2020, for a total of USD9.8b. Notably, eight rounds over USD100m were early-stage transactions, and four were debt financings. 

Latin America recorded the second and third largest transactions for a startup in history, after Rappi’s USD1b round in 2019: Nubank (USD750m) and Kavak (USD700m). 

Nubank raised the largest round on record (USD1.15b Series G and extension) after Rappi’s USD1b round in 2019. Kavak became the region’s most valuable startup (USD8.7b) after Nubank listed in December 2021.

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MAPPING THE MAJOR MARKETS

Latin America reached investment records across all major markets and stages.

• Mexico: Notable shift in investment stage by total capital invested in Mexico, from early-stage in 2020 (49%) to late-stage in 2021 (64%).
• Colombia: Largest Series B on record, with proptech Habi’s USD100m round.
• Chile reached an all-time high in debt financing with fintech Xepelin’s USD200m venture debt round.
• Late stage rounds for Argentine startups concentrated 83% of total capital invested in rounds including MURAL (USD50m) and Agrofy (USD30m).
• Ecuador: Largest round on record, with fintech Kushki’s USD86m Series B

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TOP SECTORS

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EMERGING SECTOR TRENDS

Specialization in Fintech & E-commerce

Crypto, DeFi & Blockchain

VC investment in blockchain/crypto reached USD653m in 2021, up from USD68m in 2020, in parallel with rising consumer interest for digital assets and Decentralized Finance (DeFi).

Capital was concentrated in consumer-facing asset exchanges and retail trading platforms, with notable rounds for Mercado Bitcoin (USD290m across three rounds), Bitso (USD250m), Ripio (USD50m) and Lemon Cash (USD17.3m).

Beyond consumer, investors began backing B2B platforms in Q1 2022, including Liqi (USD5.5m), Gavea Marketplace (USD5m) and Agrotoken (USD5m).

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ROUND SIZE ANALYSIS

Average and median VC round sizes were up significantly across all investment stages, driven by strong global and local investor interest, increased capital and robust exit activity.

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OTHER NOTABLE TRANSACTIONS

VENTURE DEBT

Venture debt financing reached a high of USD816m across 21 deals in 2021.

Fintech, proptech and e-commerce concentrated the largest debt tranches raised by startups in parallel with equity rounds. Disclosed venture debt transactions over USD30m surpassed USD845m* with rounds including Xepelin (USD200m), Merama (USD100m), ADDI (USD155m across two rounds), Kueski (USD100m), Stori (USD75m*), Marco Financial (USD75m), La Haus (USD50m), Kocomo (USD50m), Mendel (USD20m) and Fairplay (USD20m).

*Stori’s USD75m debt financing is not included in LAVCA Data.

WOMEN-LED STARTUPS

Venture investment in startups with a woman CEO or co-founder has risen since 2019, reaching 26% of capital raised in disclosed rounds over USD1m in 2021. 

Fifty-nine women-led startups in Latin America raised ~USD4b across 71 disclosed rounds in 2021. Nubank led, with USD1.15b raised across two rounds before its NYSE listing, followed by Stori (USD125m) and PetLove&Co (USD145m).

HIGHLIGHTED LISTINGS & EXITS

Notable 2021 listings for VC and PE-backed tech startups were concentrated on
Brazil’s B3, NYSE and NASDAQ:

M&A: Latin American investors recorded notable exits through strategic acquisitions in 2021 including:

• NXTP and Draper Cygnus exited Auth0, an identity verification solution founded by Argentines Eugenio Pace and Matías Woloski, through a USD6.5b all-stock sale to Okta.
• ALLVP exited Cornershop, a Chilean delivery platform, through a sale to Uber at a reported USD3b+ valuation, representing a reported 5x return for ALLVP Fund II. 
• Redpoint eventures, Riverwood Capital, Astella Investimentos, DGF Investimentos, TPG Growth and Endeavor Catalyst exited RD (Resultados Digitais), a Brazilian marketing automation platform for SMEs, through a USD357m sale to TOTVS.
• monashees, Accel Partners and Insight Partners exited Elo7, a Brazilian handmade products marketplace, through a USD217m all-cash sale to US-based Etsy.

LAVCA Members can download our accompanying LAVCA Data Pack for 2021 fundraising and disclosed closings; exit totals and highlighted exits; all disclosed transactions, sortable by stage, sector and HQ; stage analysis for the major markets; and sector breakouts with year-over-year sector growth.

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MOST ACTIVE INVESTORS

Overall Most Active (Disclosed deal activity)

LAVCA members in bold

LAVCA Members can download our accompanying LAVCA Data Pack for 2021 fundraising and disclosed closings; exit totals and highlighted exits; all disclosed transactions, sortable by stage, sector and HQ; stage analysis for the major markets; and sector breakouts with year-over-year sector growth.

METHODOLOGY

LAVCA Industry Data & Analysis provides insight into the fundraising, investment and exit activity among private equity funds investing in the Latin American region. Since 2008, LAVCA has conducted the Fund Manager Survey on PE/VC activity in Latin America. Year-on-year trend data is modeled from LAVCA surveys. Click here for the complete LAVCA Industry Data methodology.

Additional Reading
LAVCA’s 2022 Industry Data and Analysis
GPCA’s 2022 Trends in Global Tech