Dealflow.la #87 – Clara 🇧🇷 Raises $80M, Xante 🇲🇽 Secures $25.4M for PropTech, Argentina 🇦🇷 Cuts Export Duties, & Brazil 🇧🇷 Poverty Falls Again

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Funding

Yeda Health 🇧🇷 raised a $300K Seed Round with funding from OurCrowd LATAM Labs 🇺🇾 to develop personalized medicines for treating chronic diseases. The company uses artificial intelligence to control blood sugar levels through dietary adjustments, utilizing personal data and cutting-edge technology to provide customized nutrition solutions that meet patients' specific health needs.

e-CROSS 🇧🇷 raised a $300K Seed Round with funding from 500Global 🇺🇸 to build a D2C cross-border e-commerce platform focused on Latam. The company enables global brands to sell directly to consumers in Latam by simplifying localization, payments, logistics, and compliance.

Coalize 🇧🇷 raised a $570K Seed Round with funding from Westwood Capital 🇺🇸, Valor Ventures 🇺🇸, Urca Angels 🇧🇷, Grão 🇧🇷, and others to develop a performance management platform that eliminates manual HR processes. The company's solutions include electronic time tracking, digital employee onboarding, and automated time bank management, helping organizations transform their work environments into more efficient and healthy spaces.

Fintalk AI 🇧🇷 raised a $1.06M Later Stage VC Round with funding from HiPartners Capital&Work 🇧🇷 to operate an artificial voice intelligence platform intended to reduce service costs and increase efficiency. The company's platform specializes in using voice technology to serve customers and generate an uncomplicated, inclusive, and humanized digital transformation, enabling businesses to stay connected to their customers.

Nuvia 🇧🇷 raised a $1.7M Seed Round with funding from NXTP Ventures 🇦🇷, LASP Capital 🇧🇷, Gilgamesh Ventures 🇺🇸, a16z Scout Fund 🇺🇸, and others to develop an AI-based platform that accelerates sales growth for businesses. The company's platform offers AI agents that automate tasks, personalize interactions, and identify buying signals such as job changes and fundraising events, transforming this information into actionable tasks that enable businesses to make informed decisions.

Zapia 🇺🇾 raised a $7.25M Seed Extension Round with funding from Prosus Ventures 🇳🇱, Endeavor Catalyst 🇺🇸, Anthos Capital 🇺🇸, and Factory HQ 🇺🇸 and SNR.vc 🇺‍🇸 to develop an AI executive assistant operating via WhatsApp for the Latam market. The company's tool helps users in Latam save time and money by automating tasks, retrieving information, and managing communication directly within WhatsApp.

Vexi 🇲🇽 raised a $15.3M Debt Financing Round with funding from Covalto 🇲‍🇽 to provide credit cards and financial services to underserved segments in Mexico. The company uses alternative data and AI-powered credit scoring to offer competitive financial products to individuals without traditional credit history, fostering financial inclusion for young professionals and the emerging middle class.

Xante 🇲🇽 raised a $25.4M Debt Financing Round with funding from IDB Invest 🇺🇸 to expand its PropTech platform focused on the purchase and sale of used homes for low- and middle-income segments across Mexico. After acquiring Javer, Xante now operates in nine states, leveraging technology to streamline real estate transactions and become a leading player in affordable housing in Latam.

Credicuotas 🇦🇷 raised $33M in Debt Financing arranged by BIND Financial Solutions 🇦🇷, BIND Inversiones 🇦🇷, BST Banco de Servicios y Transacciones 🇦🇷, and Banco Patagonia 🇦🇷, as well as other participating institutions, to provide online consumer loans and financing solutions in Argentina. The company offers accessible, fully digital personal loans and merchant credit options to Argentine residents over 21 with formal income.

Clara 🇧🇷 raised an $80M Round, comprising $40M in Later Stage VC led by Citi Ventures 🇺🇸, with participation from Notable Capital 🇺🇸, monashees 🇧🇷, Kaszek 🇧🇷, DST Global 🇰🇾, Coatue 🇺🇸, and others, and $40M in Debt Financing from General Catalyst 🇺🇸 to streamline corporate expense management across Latam. Clara provides corporate cards, bill pay, financing, and spend management tools as it expands in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.

Acquisition News

• Visma 🇳🇴 acquired Lara AI 🇦🇷🇲🇽, an AI-powered HR assistant that helps identify employees with low engagement or at risk of departure while automating HR tasks through a conversational interface, to enhance its business software portfolio with advanced HR analytics and employee retention capabilities.

• Argano 🇺🇸 acquired NetLogistiK 🇲🇽, a provider of digital supply chain consulting services offering strategic advisory for business optimization, to enhance its digital transformation portfolio with specialized supply chain expertise while expanding its presence in the Latam market.

Startup & VC News

• Simma Capital 🇨🇴 announced receiving a $3M investment from Ruta N and Bancóldex for its new Simma Fintech+ fund, which plans to back 30 early-stage fintech startups developing high-impact technological solutions. This investment marks the first initiative of the Medellín Venture Capital program, positioning the city as a financial innovation hub in Latam while mobilizing capital toward early-stage startups crucial for inclusive economic growth. (Forbes Colombia)

• n1co 🇸🇻 announced accelerating its transformation into a Central American neobank, preparing its launch in Nicaragua while already operating in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala with talks to expand into Caribbean markets and Colombia. This move follows closing 2024 with 100K active users and over $1B in transactions, fueled by a $23M funding round and an upcoming $25M raise, positioning n1co to drive financial inclusion and compete with traditional banks in Latam. (Estrategia & Negocios) (Pulso Capital)

• Magical 🇨🇱 announced a new $5M USD Latam VC fund to back disruptive early-stage startups and deepen its regional impact with follow-on investments and business consulting. This strengthens support for founders in fintech, retail, mining, and more across Latam. (Funds Society)

• 2025 Regional AI Report 🇧🇷🇲🇽🇦🇷🇨🇱 reveals Latam's AI adoption rate jumped 18% in 2024 to reach 40%, with potential to generate $1.8B annually by 2030. The region is developing locally-adapted AI solutions in fintech, agritech, and healthcare, with innovations like Mexico's Kapital for SME lending and Argentina's Kilimo saving 72B liters of water through AI-farming. JP Morgan estimates a $100B opportunity if Latam fully embraces AI, though infrastructure gaps remain significant barriers. (Hispanic Executive) (Latin America Reports)

Sociopolitical News

🇦🇷 Argentina

• The World Bank approved a $230M loan for Argentina to boost job creation through expanded training programs amid the country's economic recovery efforts. The funding will support "Fomentar Empleo" and "Volver al Trabajo" initiatives, benefiting 800,000 unemployed workers as part of a larger $12B support package announced last month. (Infobae) (El Universal) (Grupo la Provincia)

• Argentina’s government will eliminate export duties on over 4,400 industrial products, aiming to boost competitiveness and support nearly 3,600 companies-especially SMEs-amid a challenging economic climate. The measure, long demanded by industry groups, excludes key sectors like automotive and petrochemicals but is expected to benefit 88% of industrial exports, valued at $3.8B in 2024, and follows broader fiscal reforms under President Milei’s administration. (El Observador) (Buenos Aires Times) (Derecha Diario)

🇧🇷 Brazil

• The auction of four port terminals in Paranaguá and Rio de Janeiro attracted investments exceeding $430M, setting a sector record and making Paranaguá the first Brazilian port with 100% regularized areas. These terminals will double agricultural cargo capacity with 35-year contracts, strengthening Brazil's export competitiveness and logistics infrastructure. (Folhamax) (UOL) (Portos do Paraná)

• Brazil's agricultural sector shows strong recovery as Banco do Brasil secured $1.3B in rural credit deals while Agrishow generated $2.7B in machinery sales. These impressive figures at Brazil's premier farm exhibitions signal renewed producer confidence and technology adoption amid projections for a record grain harvest in 2025 after a challenging 2024. (Money Times) (Folha)

• Brazil’s poverty rate fell for the third year in a row, reflecting the cumulative effect of Lula’s revived social programs. The World Bank reports Brazilian poverty dropped to 27.4% in 2023 as 8.7M people exited poverty, driven by robust labor markets and an expanded Bolsa Família, while extreme poverty declined to 4.4%, its lowest level since 2012. (Diario do Centro do Mundo)(Swissinfo) (EFE)

🇨🇱 Chile

• The United States Trade Representative (USTR) added Chile to its 2025 Special 301 Priority Watch List, underscoring sustained IP enforcement concerns. This marks the 14th straight year on the list, reflecting U.S. concerns over persistent satellite piracy, limited copyright enforcement, and delays in pharmaceutical patent disputes under its 2004 FTA with the U.S. (CNN Chile) (Diario Financiero) (MegaNoticias)

🇨🇴 Colombia

• The Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean granted $127.9M to Banco de Occidente to finance SMEs’ trade operations and green ventures in Colombia. The bank will deploy the funds-including export pre-financing for Rainforest Alliance-certified Carcafe-and expand social inclusion, energy efficiency and green business credit, complementing its $75M CAF revolving line supporting 282 firms in 2024. (El Heraldo) (CAF)

• The Electoral Observation Mission (MOE) warns that a constitutional amendment to permit permanent party-switching threatens to erode Colombia’s party system and democratic accountability. It cautions that allowing legislators to change parties without losing their seats undermines voter mandates, fragments political cohesion and reverses 2003–2009 reforms after its Senate commission approval. (Misión de Observación Electoral) (Infobae)

• The prohibition of President Petro’s promotional spot by Colombia’s CRC intensifies debate over executive communication rights and participatory democracy. Petro alleged censorship and possible prevaricato when the regulator blocked government advertisements soliciting support for his Senate-pending consultation, prompting him to order legal filings and clarify that pre-approval promotion is constitutionally permitted. (Infobae) (Caracol) (Radio Nacional)

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

• Costa Rica launched a public–private “Innovation Hub” initiative to attract high-tech investment and accelerate economic growth. It combines government, academia and industry with IDB backing to expand the innovation ecosystem across medtech, software and semiconductors. (CRHoy)

• Costa Rica has earmarked roughly $190K to stimulate AI, technology, and life sciences projects, aiming to drive innovation and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals. The call funds partnerships between companies and research units, aligning with the National AI Strategy’s R&D axis to pilot projects in health and agriculture. (DPL News)

• Costa Rica’s new three-month humanitarian permit lets roughly 200 Trump-era deportees from distant nations legally settle or depart, ending months of indefinite detention. The policy, returning passports and enabling integration, responds to ombudsman and rights groups’ pressure and aligns with IOM-supervised, U.S.-funded repatriation arrangements. (The New York Times)

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

• A new three-year public trust will channel investment into the Dominican Republic’s aviation and space industries, cutting maintenance costs and training local engineers. Managed by Fiduciaria Reservas and led by Maj. Gen. Carlos Febrillet, the fideicomiso aims to develop MRO facilities, commercialize outputs and build on Law 57-23’s 50K-job forecast. (Diario Libre)

• The Dominican government boosted Q1 2025 inflation-fighting subsidies by 33.6%, underlining its commitment to price stability amid external shocks. It disbursed roughly $99M-83.9% for fuel and 14% for transport-and directed $198M to social programs like Aliméntate, reinforcing its adaptive protection framework. (Diario Libre)

• The Dominican Republic’s government stands to save approximately $1.5B this year due to falling oil prices and a stronger peso. Lower crude-averaging $59.55 vs the budgeted $81.30/barrel-alongside a 4.19-peso appreciation to RD$58.96/USD trims import costs, eases fiscal strains and dampens inflationary pressures. (N Digital) (El Dinero)

🇪🇨 Ecuador

• Ecuador’s protocol signing opens China’s dairy market, promising to boost an industry that supports over 500K jobs. It follows the FTA and inspections of six farms and three plants, aligning firms with GACC requirements. China absorbed US$4.64B of Ecuadorian exports in 2024, underscoring the new market’s strategic value. (El Universo) (TradingEconomics)

• The prospect of a free‐trade agreement between Ukraine and Ecuador signals a strategic deepening of ties across regions. President Zelenski congratulated President Noboa on his election and announced joint teams will study a free‐trade pact focusing on agricultural imports, digitalization and security cooperation under the Ukraine–Latam framework. (Swissinfo) (Banca y Negocios) (Vistazo)

• The Ecuadorian government and SolGold signed an Amended Investment Protection Agreement, safeguarding $311.5M in past investment and providing legal certainty for the Cascabel project. The AIPA unlocks Franco-Nevada/Osisko’s second financing tranche, grants ICC arbitration in London, and cements ESG, local employment and community development commitments under Ecuador’s COPCI regime. (El Universo) (StockTitan)

• Ecuador’s Noboa administration must secure nearly $7.9B in 2025 loans to cover a $2.5B fiscal gap and $5.4B debt repayments, raising funding doubts. High country-risk premia limit bond market access, heightening reliance on IMF and multilateral financing amid lower oil revenues and higher social spending. (Primicias) (Fitch Ratings)

🇸🇻 El Salvador

• Bukele offered Trump a 50% discount on prisoner fees at El Salvador’s mega-prison for deporting nine MS-13 leaders, signaling a political pact. Brokered by Ibrajim Bukele and U.S. official Michael Needham, it links $6M in prison funding to returning top MS-13 figures, underscoring judicial motives over cost-cutting. (El País US) (CNN)

• El Salvador remains committed to its Bitcoin reserve accumulation under an IMF $1.4B loan program. It has amassed ~6,165 BTC (~$600M) while meeting IMF-mandated fiscal and governance reforms without any restrictions on crypto purchases. (The Daily Hodl) (BeInCrypto)

• Fitch forecasts a slowdown in El Salvador's economic growth to 2.2% in 2025, reflecting continued fiscal challenges despite recent credit rating improvements. The projection represents a deceleration from the estimated 2.6% growth in 2024, while the IMF offers a slightly more optimistic outlook with a 2.47% forecast. The country's deficit is expected to improve significantly to 2.9% of GDP in 2025, down 1.8 percentage points from 2024, supported by the $1.4B IMF program. (Fitch Ratings) (IMF)

🇬🇹 Guatemala

• Guatemala’s Foreign Ministry disputed the US embassy’s report of a recent China-based hack, stating the breach occurred in September 2022. Detected during a joint US Southern Command audit, the intrusion persisted through February 2025, underscoring persistent cyber espionage risks from Beijing. (Reuters) (AP News)

• Guatemala advances export promotion strategy at its second CONAPEX meeting to enhance global market access. Officials assessed US trade benefits and WTO alignment to streamline exports, complementing data showing exports rose to $13.4B through November, up 2.7%, with four more CONAPEX sessions planned and port-sector reforms underway. (Ministry of Economy of Guatemala) (Ministry of Economy of Guatemala)

• The detention of Luis Pacheco, a key ally of President Bernardo Arevalo and deputy energy minister, marks an escalation in Guatemala’s political strife. Arrested on terrorism and illicit association charges alongside the movement’s treasurer, Pacheco’s detention drew Arevalo’s denunciation of judicial overreach after his role in protests against election challenges. (Reuters)

🇭🇳 Honduras

• Federal judge flags violation of due process in ICE's misleading deportation of a 2-year-old U.S. citizen to Honduras. Lawyers say ICE concealed options under its own guidelines, inducing mothers to consent; Honduran NGOs decry risks to child welfare amid high poverty. (Financial Express) (MSNBC)

• Workers in Honduras demand jobs and dignified wages amid an employment crisis, while businesses call for a national employment pact. Thousands marched calling for decent pay, healthcare and pensions; employers warn of 316K jobless and 1.6M in informal work, urging clear rules and a national pact to create formal jobs. (La Prensa) (Swissinfo)

• The rising cost of the basic food basket in Honduras, reaching L12.6K (approx. $508) in March 2025, now exceeds the minimum wage for many workers despite recent increases. This situation highlights a significant affordability gap, as some agricultural workers face a L3.5K (approx. $142) monthly shortfall even after a 5.5%-7% wage hike, with food inflation at 3.03% year-over-year. (La Prensa HN) (Trading Economics) (WageIndicator)

🇲🇽 Mexico

• Sheinbaum rejects Trump’s troop deployment offer to uphold Mexico’s sovereignty. The president declined a proposal to allow US Army operations on Mexican soil, offering joint intelligence-sharing instead and urging action to curb US-origin arms inflow that empowers cartels. (UnoTV) (El País) (Reuters)

• Mexico avoided a technical recession as Q1 2025 GDP rose 0.2% QoQ on agricultural strength. The primary sector jumped 8.1% while industrial output fell 0.3% and services stagnated, amplifying concerns that volatile farming gains mask broad weaknesses amid U.S. tariff uncertainties. (El Economista) (Mexico News Daily)

• Mexican bankers call for early USMCA renegotiations to update trade rules and safeguard domestic industries. They argue that outdated rules undermine post-pandemic recovery-Banxico cut 2025 growth from 1.5% to 0.6% amid tariff threats-and urge rule-of-origin and investment updates ahead of the 2026 review. (Border Report) (Credit Agricole)

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

• Ortega denounces Trump’s migrant policies and US sanctions, ending 100 days of silence and escalating bilateral tensions. After quietly accepting deportations and stepping back from an ICJ case, the Sandinista president lambasted family separations, 18% export tariffs, and bolstered ties with Russia and China in response to being deemed a US “adversary.” (EL PAÍS) (Tico Times)

• Ortega’s new conservation law repeals protections over 25% of Nicaragua’s territory, opening parks to mining, logging and hunting. It repeals the 2007 protected areas regulation, empowers Marena to resize boundaries and greenlight extractive projects, risking forest loss on top of the current 2.5% annual deforestation rate. (Confidencial) (Diálogo Américas)

• "If press freedom dies, we’re all left in the dark", warns La Prensa’s director. La Prensa has operated online from exile since Nicaraguan police seized its Managua offices in 2021 and its staff faced arrests, earning the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize 2025 amid Nicaragua’s ranking among the world’s most repressive media environments. (RFI) (UNESCO) (RSF)

🇵🇦 Panama

• Protests erupted in Panama over a security Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S., which citizens say jeopardizes the canal’s sovereign control. Demonstrators contend the agreement breaches Panama’s neutrality clause and authorizes U.S. troop deployments near the canal amid strategic contestation with China. (AP News) (NewsroomPanama)

• Panamanian exporters face rising costs and order losses after U.S. imposes 10% tariffs. Importers are shifting higher duties onto suppliers, squeezing margins and triggering cancellations, while Panama’s MICI seeks exemptions under the TPC to safeguard shipments valued at $21.8M in early 2025 and sustain a projected $1B annual export target. (La Prensa Panamá) (La Estrella)

• Growing public backlash in Panama underscores deep-rooted environmental and governance concerns as the government considers reactivating megamining. President Mulino has dismissed “contract-law” concessions but proposals face criticism over a dated mining code, scant environmental monitoring and alleged rights violations of indigenous communities. (teleSUR) (AP News) (Mongabay)

🇵🇾 Paraguay

• Paraguay’s soy sector is caught in global tariff turbulence, threatening export revenues. As the third-largest exporter behind Brazil and the U.S., farmers endure price swings from U.S.–China duties, pivoting hopes toward rising Chinese demand via Brazil/Argentina amid favorable rains and looming EU deforestation rules by Dec 2025. (Reuters) (LatinAmericanPost)

• The $152M Q1 injection from Itaipú and Yacyretá royalties and energy cession bolsters Paraguay’s budget and local services. The funds-split equally between the central government and subnational entities-comprise $94.7M in royalties and $57.4M from energy transfers, of which 80% funds the national school‐feeding program. (ABC Color)

• Paraguay’s designation of Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist group and expansion to include Hamas and Hezbollah’s political wings marks a strategic escalation in Latam’s anti-terror efforts. President Peña called it a boost to security, and US and Israeli officials praised it for disrupting proxy funding in the Tri-Border area. (UPI) (US State Dept.)

🇵🇪 Peru

• Peru’s tax authority intensified debt recovery by seizing an additional $87M in Telefónica Perú assets. This follows an April 24 embargo of $139M tied to unpaid 2000–01 and 2009 Income Tax, as Sunat enforces payment while Telefónica guarantees uninterrupted service to its 13M+ users. (El Economista) (El Comercio)

🇻🇪 Venezuela

• A UN top court bars Venezuela from holding elections in Guyana’s contested Essequibo, marking a legal win for Georgetown. Venezuela has rejected the ICJ injunction and pushed ahead with May 25 polls, invoking historical claims as offshore oil discoveries near ExxonMobil’s Stabroek Block escalate tensions. (Washington Post) (Infobae) (AP News)

• Venezuela, squeezed by US secondary tariffs and Chevron’s exit, urged China to ramp up oil imports to offset collapsing output. March exports fell 11.5% to 805K bpd after tariffs and licence revocations, prompting Vice President Delcy Rodríguez to seek increased purchases and diluent from CNPC during her Beijing visit. (El Financiero) (Reuters) (Bloomberg)

• The Venezuelan government denounced a terrorist attack on its national electric grid, underscoring persistent infrastructure vulnerabilities amid political strife. Sabotage targeting four 230 kV towers in Aragua prompted rapid technical deployments to restore service and follows prior attacks blamed on opposition forces aiming to destabilize Maduro’s administration. (Milenio) (TeleSUR) (La Jornada)

🇺🇸 Miami

• The Port of Miami is deploying new customs strategies to cushion importers from Trump’s broad tariffs that risk slowing crucial trade flows. Firms are using bonded warehouses and foreign-trade zones to defer duties, while the port boosts capacity and forges Latam transshipment links to sustain cargo volumes. (CNN Español)

• The Miami Grand Prix is poised to inject $505M into South Florida’s economy in 2025. This builds on over $1B generated across the event’s first three runnings, which drew a record 275K attendees and 3.1M U.S. TV viewers, spotlighting F1’s U.S. growth push. (South Florida Business Journal) (WPTV)

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