April 20, 2018 @ 12:00 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Brazilian fintech startup Nubank announced earlier this week the launch of its new facial biometrics feature, AccessoBio. According to various reports, the fintech firm will now use the AccessoBio tool to help prevent identity fraud in credit card transactions. ZDNet noted that Nubank believes the introduction of… Read More

April 17, 2018 @ 11:45 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Santander InnoVentures, the fintech venture capital fund of Santander Group, has invested in the startup Creditas, a leading Brazilian secured lending platform. Creditas is Santander InnoVentures, Santander’s USD 200 million corporate VC fund, first investment in Brazil and second in Latin America. Creditas increased of… Read More

April 12, 2018 @ 9:52 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Santander announced on Thursday the launch of its new international payments service using blockchain-based technology. The service is available to retail customers in Spain, UK, Brazil, and Poland, and will be rolled out across more countries in the coming months. According to Santander, the new… Read More

April 3, 2018 @ 11:15 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

FinanZero, a marketplace for consumer loans in Brazil, announced on Monday it raised $3.6 million through its Series A funding round, which was led by  Swedish publicly listed investment company, Vostok Emerging Finance, with participation by other Swedish investors, including Webrock Ventures and Zentro Founders. Founded in 2015 and launched in 2016, FinanZero describes… Read More

March 23, 2018 @ 4:55 pm By Raphael Andrade  |  

Late last year, the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission (Comissão de Valores Mobiliários or CVM) spoke about initial coin offerings (ICOs). At that time, the CVM published a frequently asked questions-like notice (see here). The FAQ lays down some introductory aspects on the subject, conceptually… Read More

February 23, 2018 @ 8:33 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Thursday, Brazil-based mobile payments platform RecargaPay announced it secured $22 million through its Series B investment round. According to the company, New investors include IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, TheVentureCity, and Ventech.  Reportedly, entrepreneurs Fabrice Grinda and Martin Varsavsky and more than 100 angel… Read More

February 1, 2018 @ 3:00 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Brazilian fintech EBANX announced on Wednesday it has secured a $30 million investment from FTV Capital. The company states it is focused on helping global merchants grow exponentially and increase revenue in Latin America by offering end-to-end local payments solutions, which allows businesses to sell to… Read More

December 14, 2017 @ 3:56 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Earlier this week, Brazilian fintech startup Nubank announced it has opened an engineering unit in Berlin. According to CTO Edward Wible, the company is expecting to hire two dozen employees for the new German hub. Founded in 2013, Nubank stated it is committed to fighting… Read More

August 6, 2017 @ 6:51 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Commissão de Valores Mobiláros (CVM) in Brazil has published their regulatory regime to legalize investment crowdfunding. The document outlining the rules is embedded below (in Portuguese). The Investment crowdfunding regulation (Regulation 588) creates a new exemption for issuers of securities to raise funding online…. Read More

May 18, 2017 @ 1:52 pm By JD Alois  |  

Brazil used to be the darling of emerging markets. For years the country could do no wrong. Blessed with amazing natural resources, including a good supply of oil, and a growing middle class, Brazil appeared to be trailblazing a path to prosperity and growth. Today,… Read More

February 10, 2017 @ 10:41 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Following the launch of its StartEngine crowdfunding campaign, South Carolina’s Alkane Truck Company announced its exclusive agreement with Brazilian truck manufacturer, Agrale. The company stated the agreement names it the sole representative for Agrale’s sales and service in North America. As previously reported, Alkane assembles heavy-duty trucks that… Read More

December 17, 2016 @ 5:02 pm By Jason Best & Sherwood Neiss  |  

  Brazil has a number of similarities to the rest of the world when it comes to funding startups, small or medium enterprises (SMEs). These business owners either have to fund their businesses themselves, seek capital from close friends or family, Angels, VCs, or for… Read More

October 11, 2016 @ 5:59 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Brazilian lender Banco Votorantim have added a new specialty to its venture capital portfolio in Brazil, reported Reuters. Votorantim will invest an initial 3 million reais ($930,000) in the BR Startups fund created by Microsoft in 2014, with an expectation of funding about a… Read More

February 23, 2016 @ 6:15 am By Erin Hobey  |  

The Mobile World Congress 2016 continues today in sunny Barcelona.  PayPal announced its new global partnerships and product updates that showcase its vision of using technology to reimagine financial services to be faster, simpler and more inclusive, whether online, in-app, in store or in new contexts. “We… Read More

December 8, 2015 @ 2:06 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Vitacon Incorporadora e Construtora, a real estate company based out of Brazil, has launcheda investment crowdfunding campaign on URBE.ME to raise funds of what’s considered the first building to be financed by the funding method, VN Cardoso de Melo. The financing of the real estate development… Read More

October 21, 2015 @ 12:54 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Bondora, a pan-European marketplace lender, opens to accredited investors from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, India, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Australia. The platform now allows global accredited investors to invest directly into personal unsecured loans across three European markets including Spain,… Read More

September 29, 2015 @ 9:05 am By JD Alois  |  

In less than two years of operation, Kickante has blitzed into the Brazilian crowdfunding scene with a growth rate that tops 1000%.  While the Brazilian economy struggles, Kickante is a shining light on the economic horizon that matches capital to entrepreneurs and other project creators…. Read More

August 4, 2015 @ 8:55 am By JD Alois  |  

The shift from bricks and mortar banking to  direct lending occurring online is a global phenomena.  One country that has seen few entrants is Brazil, the largest economy in South America and the 2nd largest economy in the western hemisphere. But like other parts of… Read More

June 29, 2015 @ 9:20 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Money360, Inc., an online peer-to-peer (P2P) commercial real estate lending platform, announced on Monday it has closed a $6.75 million commercial real estate loan in Chicago, which was funded by an institutional investor.  The two-year loan was made to an investment firm that focuses on operating… Read More

February 27, 2015 @ 9:45 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Last December, Partner and ‎Head of Investor Community/Partnerships at OurCrowd Zack Miller highlighted crowdfunding websites to watch in 2015, citing six rewards-based platforms for athletes:  DreamFuel,  Pursuit, SportFunder, MakeAChamp,  RallyMe and Athlete.com. Montreal-based MakeAChamp, one of the six platforms cited by Miller,  provides an example of this rising trend: started in late 2012, the platform raised… Read More