Hello there,
Welcome to another edition of 🔍 Startup Researcher - Latin America, your essential digest delivering the latest news and premium insights on startups and venture capital across the region 🌍
If you haven't subscribed yet, now's the perfect time. Don't miss the opportunity to supercharge your understanding and stay ahead in this dynamic world.
📰 Important News
- Alfred, a Mexico City-based fintech, secured $15 million in Series A funding led by F-Prime Capital to modernize B2B cross-border payment solutions.
- Jelou raised a $10 million Series A funding round led by Wellington Access Ventures to expand its AI platform, Brain.
- Revena landed $7.6 million in Seed funding led by Canary to automate hospital revenue cycle management and expand its AI solution across Brazil.
- Brazilian fintech Lerian closed a $5.6 million Seed round led by Maya Capital to advance its open-source financial infrastructure.
- Colombian startup Refurbi raised a $4 million Seed extension to expand its refurbished smartphone circular ecosystem into Mexico.
💰️ IPO and M&A Watch
- PicPay debuted on Nasdaq on January 29th, raising $434 million at a $2.6 billion valuation, marking Brazil’s first IPO in over four years.
- Agibank filed for a U.S. IPO seeking up to a $3.3 billion valuation and a $785 million raise as the Brazilian digital bank targets a NYSE listing.
- Telos Labs acquired fintech Flourish Fi to integrate AI with behavioral science, aiming to enhance financial habits for customers across the Americas.
- Tuhabi acquired Pulppo to expand its Mexican real estate footprint, combining advanced technology with Pulppo's extensive network of brokers.
- Winclap acquired Brkaway, a leading creator management platform, to significantly expand its creator-focused unit and scale social-first marketing.
🏦 About Investors
- Triaxis Capital is expanding its investment efforts in Northeast Brazil with a new $76.9 million growth fund, aiming to make over 30 investments.
- Francisco Mariscal co-founded Angeles Ventures, a $20 million fund, to back tech startups led by Latino entrepreneurs.
- Ruta N and partners launched M Capital, a new lightweight investment fund with 20 investors, focusing on early-stage startups in Colombia and LatAm.
- ONOVOLAB launched ONOVOLAB Ventures with FCJ Venture Builder to create and scale innovation, creative economy, and ESG startups.
🚀 Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
Alfred
Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Mexico City, Alfred is a B2B fintech building modern infrastructure for cross-border payments across Latin America. The company offers a unified API that connects local banking rails, real-time payment systems, and stablecoins, enabling faster, cheaper, and more transparent international transactions for businesses. Alfred recently raised a $15 million Series A led by F-Prime Capital, with participation from Brevan Howard Digital and White Star Capital. Led by CEO and co-founder Diego Yanez alongside co-founder Matias Plano, Alfred operates across Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Argentina. Its mission is to simplify cross-border commerce by fixing Latin America’s fragmented payment infrastructure.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
Triaxis Capital
Founded in 2012 and based in Recife, Triaxis Capital is a Brazilian venture capital firm focused on early and growth-stage technology companies, with a distinctive emphasis on the country’s Northeast region. Backed through funds managed in partnership with Crescera Capital, the firm recently expanded its regional push with $76.9 million in active capital, aiming to complete 30+ investments across underserved innovation hubs. Triaxis is led by co-founder Haim Mesel, whose long-standing local presence underpins the firm’s hands-on approach. Sector-agnostic but drawn to B2B SaaS, fintech, healthtech, and AI-enabled models, Triaxis positions itself as a regional bridge, channeling institutional capital into high-potential founders and accelerating the Northeast’s rise in Brazil’s startup ecosystem.
🤑 Opportunities Expiring Soon
AWS/CTIB Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator
- 📢 Organizer: Vestbee
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed, Pre-Series A, Series A
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 3, 2026
Fowler Global Social Innovation Challenge 2026
- 📢 Organizer: University of San Diego
- 🗂️ Category: Funding, Competition/Challenge, Award/Prize
- 🪜 Target Stages: Seed, Revenue-generating
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 6, 2026
Fast-track To Impact Programme
- 📢 Organizer: ProVeg International
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Agriculture & Food
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 8, 2026
Entrepreneur First (EF) Spring 2026 - The Global Talent Investor
- 📢 Organizer: Entrepreneur First
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator, Funding
- 🪜 Target Stages: Ideation, Pre-seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 8, 2026
xG-Incubator
- 📢 Organizer: xG-Incubator
- 🗂️ Category: Incubator, Funding
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Connectivity & Networks, DeepTech
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 9, 2026
Thank you for joining us this week! We trust you found value in our latest edition. 🚀
Your feedback is invaluable to us, so please don't hesitate to share your thoughts. We're committed to continuously improving and delivering content tailored to your interests and needs 📩
Looking forward to staying connected and bringing you more exciting content next time!