Nov 23, 2023

Free RapiCredit secures $7 million funding RapiCredit , a Colombian fintech, has secured $7 million in funding to address the growing demand for microcredit in the country. The funds were raised through a portfolio purchase arrangement, with New York-based financial institution Almavest acquiring a portion of RapiCredit's debt. RapiCredit, founded in 2013, focuses on granting fast and flexible microloans from $25 to $250 to the unbanked population, and customers with low credit scores. The company has granted nearly half a trillion pesos in microcredits this year, with plans to reach 2.7 million loans in 2024. The funding will support the company's ongoing efforts to provide accessible digital credit to underserved populations, particularly those in strata two and three with limited access to traditional banking services. Credix raises $60 million for credit tokenization Credix , a Brazilian platform for tokenized credits, has raised $60 million in funding from undisclosed professional investors in the United States who manage over $3 billion in assets. Credix, founded in 2021, focuses on credit tokenization for professional investors, particularly in financing small and medium-sized companies in Brazil and Latin America. The platform aims to provide greater profitability, efficiency, and transparency to investors through blockchain-based credit tokenization. The investment will be used to expand Credix's operations in Brazil and Latin America, with the goal of reaching $100 million in tokenized assets in the short term. Wealthtech Hapi raises $1.6 million Peruvian wealthtech Hapi , is on track to achieve its goal of democratizing stock investment in Latin America. Launched in October 2020, the San Francisco-based wealthtech allows Latin American customers to trade U.S. stocks and invest in crypto. The increased interest in investing, greater internet access, and attractive stock market performances contributed to Hapi's growth in the region growing to nearly 300,000 users and aims to reach 500,000 in Q1 2024. Having closed an investment round of $1.6 million from Utec Ventures, Unpopular Ventures, Softeq Ventures, and Mural Capital, the funds will improve Hapi’s stock buying and selling products, and boost growth and market reach in Latin America. The round was raised in September 2022 but was just announced publicly. Visa invests in Brazilian Agrotoken for agricultural product tokenization Visa has announced an investment in the Pre-series A round of Agrotoken , a Brazilian company specializing in the tokenization of agricultural products. Launched in 2020, Agrotoken's goal is to create more opportunities in the agricultural industry, fostering financial inclusion for small farmers through tokenized financial products. The startup helps farmers convert grains into digital assets to exchange them for products or to request loans collateralized by grains. In collaboration with Visa since 2022, they co-developed a card that allows farmers to use tokenized grains for any type of purchase, without intermediaries, in more than 80 million merchants that accept Visa worldwide. Now expanding the collaboration, the investment will be used to accelerate project growth, develop new products, and extend the issuance of Agrotoken Visa cards globally. GoPass secures $26 million Colombian mobility 'superapp,' GoPass , has raised $26 million in a funding round led by Kaszek Ventures, the largest Latin American venture capital firm. GoPass provides a comprehensive platform for managing payments at gas stations, car washing services, self-service stores, towing services, and more, creating an integrated mobility ecosystem. With over 350,000 cars and trucks using GoPass and six million transactions processed in the first half of 2023, the company aims to reach 800 service points and 70 million transactions by 2024. The funds will be utilized to expand GoPass's footprint in Colombia, investing in the development of new mobility solutions. Follow our full coverage of the  Latin America  startup and technology scene and get up to date with what's happening in the key markets within the region.