Everything you need to know about Argentina’s startup scene

Community-driven Argentina Startup Guide

Source: Lonely Planet

Josh and I finished our Chile LATAM tour leg and now we’re in Argentina. So, it’s time to share our community-driven Argentina startup guide with the world! In it, you will find everything you need to know about Argentina’s startup scene.

• What everyone needs to know about Argentina’s startup scene
• Why Argentina will attract investors and founders alike
• Argentina founders and startups to watch
• Argentina startups with exits
• Argentina investors
• Argentina accelerators
• Argentina co-working spaces

If there’s something missing, leave a reply and I’ll update the post periodically.

📚 Check out our other community-driven startup guides: 🇲🇽 What everyone needs to know about Mexico’s startup scene and 🇨🇱 What everyone needs to know about Chile’s startup scene

What everyone needs to know about Argentina’s startup scene

You definitely need to know that by mid February 2022, there were 42 unicorns in Latin America. 8 of them are in Argentina. They include: Mural, Auth0, Despegar, Globant, MercadoLibre, OLX, Prisma Medios de Pago, Tiendanube/Nuvemshop and Ualá. Auth0 was acquired by Okta. Despegar and Globant trade in the NYSE. MercadoLibre trades on NASDAQ.

Other notable Argentinian exits:

• In January 2022 Satellogic completed a SPAC merger that provided $262M.
• In February 2022, it was announced that Technisis was being acquired by Sofi at a $1.1B. Sofi completed the acquisition in March.

Trends

2022 research of tech trends in Latin America by LAVCA point to a huge opportunity in startup-VC investment in the region. To begin, there’s been a large increase in later-stage rounds. In 2019, there was only one (Rappi’s) but the latest report in LAVCA points to 12 deals over $250M. Two of these late stage deals were in Argentina: Tiendanube (Series E, $500M) and Ualá (Series D, $350K).

Source: LAVCA

Overall in Latin America, the leading sector continued to be fintech at $6.1B invested in 258 deals. From 2019 to 2020, there was a 2Xs increase in number of deals and 3.7Xs increase in capital deployed. For Argentina e-commerce grew 47% YoY with $609M deployed in the sector.

When you look at year-over-year (YoY) growth in LATAM, Argentina grew 131% in number of deals and 503% in dollars deployed. Between 2019 and 2021, the number of deals went from 27 to 60 and the amount invested went from $294M to $1.29B.

Source: LAVCA

Not surprisingly the largest number of startups in Argentina are headquartered in Buenos Aires. In 2020, there were 248 startups, according to Statista. So, I’m heading there for some unicorn hunting!

Source: Statista

💰 Interested in learning more about the startup-VC opportunity that lies in LATAM? Read this post.

🗞 Want to follow or join my journey through LATAM’s hottest startup hubs? Subscribe to my newsletter here.

🗓 Want to meet up with the Argentine startup community for coffee in Buenos Aires? RSVP here.

Why Argentina will attract investors and founders alike

You may be wondering why you haven’t heard more about Argentina’s startups and VCs. I wondered that too for a quick minute and then I realized it’s because Argentina is an underestimated market. Yeah, much like there are underestimated founders* & GPs**, there are also underestimated markets***.

So, let’s change that with some reasons why investors and founders should look at Argentina.

• Talent ⎼ Due to its free higher education programs, Argentina’s population is among the most educated in Latin America. Argentina is well-known as a global outsourcing hub for software and app development, and it is currently producing some of the region’s top tech startups, including Satellogic, Ualá, and Etermax.
• Location / Time zone — Buenos Aires may be over 7K miles from the United States, but there is only a one to two-hour time difference with the US East Coast depending on the time of year. And ten non-stop flights from the US daily.
• Entrepreneurs are very resilient — Argentina has been through many different crises for the last 20 years. And in order to manage high-levels of uncertainty, survive and thrive, Argentine founders have developed resiliency and creative problem solving skills.
• Web3 — Buenos Aires is thought by many to perhaps be the ethereum hub of the world given the number of important ethereum companies started here — and the more general Web3 talent is on fire.

*Underestimated founders: founders who can build unicorns but are looked over because they don’t fit the stereotypical Silicon Valley mold.

**Underestimated GPs: Underestimated GPs are those who can build funds that will return alpha but are looked over because they don’t fit the stereotypical Silicon Valley mold (or the equivalent in other geographies).

***Underestimated markets: underestimated markets tend to be markets that are not the US or of the original colonizer countries but have the potential to become the world’s startup-VC leaders.

Alright from here on, I share interesting data for you to fall in love with, move to, and invest in Argentina. Enjoy!

Argentina founders and startups to watch

Last year’s Argentine darling and a startup was Ualá! The company raised $350M at a $2.5B valuation for their Series D from Endeavor, Monashees+, Ribbit, and more. This year, Technisis was bought by SoFi!

Source: CBInsights

Founders to watch

• Emiliano Kargieman Founder and CEO of Satellogic
• Mariano Nunez, Co-Founder at Onapsis
• Julian Gurfinkiel, Co-Founder & CMO en Turismocity, Martin Levy, Co-founder
• Maximiliano Landrein, Co Founder and CEO of Agrofy, & Alejandro Larosa, Co-founder and President
• Pierpaolo Barbieri, Founder of Ualá
• Santiago Siri, Founder of UBI, Universal Basic Income.
• Agustina Fainguersch, Founder of Wolox (acq by Accenture)
• Matias Wolosky and Eugenio Pace, Founders of Auth0
• Marcelo Cavazzol, Founder of Lemon
• Cecilia Retegui, Founder of Zolvers
• Patricio Jutard, Founder of Mural
• Maximo Cavazani, Founder of Etermax
• Luz Bochardt and Martin Bochardt, Co-founders of Henry
• Demian Brener, Founder of Open Zeppelin
• Miguel Santos, Founder of Technisys
• Pamela Scheurer, Co founder & CTO Nubimetrics
• Celina Nieman, Co-founder Defiant
• Sabrina Castelli, Founder of Mujer Financiera
• Gaston Irigoyen, Founder at Pomelo
• Damian Catanzaro, Founder of Cafecito
• Andres Lawson, Founder of Osana
• Migue Morkin, Lautaro Schiaffino, founders of Sirena.app
• Patricio Molina, founder Real Trends
• Gabriel Gruber, founder of Exactly
• Franco Forte and Luqui Diaz, founders of Mudafy

Startups to watch

• Ualá is a fintech company that offers a financial ecosystem through an app, linked to a free international Mastercard card.
• Tiendanube/Nuvemshop provides SMBs in Latin America with the tools to setup, manage, and promote their online business.
• Satellogic is making Earth Observation imagery accessible and affordable to solve the world’s most pressing problems.
• Onapsis provides cybersecurity and compliance solutions for cloud and on-premise ERP and business-critical applications.
• Turismocity is the largest travel search engine for Latin America.
• Agrofy is a global pure agriculture e-commerce ecosystem.
• Technisys offers digital banking technologies for the financial services industry.
• VU Security is a global company focused on fraud prevention and identity protection.
• Etermax is an international tech company, specialized on developing global video games.
• Lemon Cash focuses on wallet, payments and crypto.
• Pomelo provides fintech infrastructure and financial services. The platform of the company enables fintech and embedded finance players to launch virtual accounts as well as issue prepaid and credit cards.
• Belo is the app in which you can move in pesos and cryptocurrencies so that your money is worth more every day.
• Exactly is building an open source, non-custodial protocol on Ethereum, that will bring fixed-income solutions for lenders and borrowers.
• Egg is a company that enhances human cooperation.
• Skyloom is developing a spaceborne infrastructure based on optical communications technology & relay satellites.
• Nubimetrics provides big data and business intelligence for vendors using MercadoLibre.
• Beeflow increases crop yields to farmers by applying scientific knowledge and technologies into bee pollination.
• Agrofy is a global pure agriculture e-commerce ecosystem.
• Ripio is a bitcoin and digital payments company that provides electronic payment solutions for businesses in Latin America.
• RSK is the first open-source smart contract platform.
• Increase is a world class FinTech company that empowers businesses with a wide group of solutions.
• Kilimo is a Big Data solution for water management in agriculture.
• Zolvers allows people to find qualified and reliable persons to help them on household tasks.
• Coderhouse offers live online courses in programming, design, data and marketing for professionals in LatAm.
• Digital House is a coding school where new generations of coders and digital professionals are trained.
• Moova is the last mile digital platform for urban logistics providers. We are reimagining last-mile logistics for a sustainable world.
• Puramente is a meditation app in Spanish.
• Nilus is a social enterprise that applies crowdsourcing technology and AI to create healthy food markets for low-income people.
• Agrotoken is a grain-backed, transactional digital asset used to save or exchange for supplies, services, and other assets.
• Aument is a SaaS platform that generates marketing automations to help ecommerce stores acquire and retain customers.
• Qurable is a marketplace for blockchain-based physical and digital assets.
• Kitchenita is foodtech delivery for native brands.
• Waterplan is a SaaS platform for companies to manage water availability in their facilities.
• Nulinga is an e-learning platform for language learning by employees of different companies.
• Quiena is the investment advisor for all retail investors from Latin America.
• Let’sBit offers a digital banking alternative to local and cross-border payments, investments, savings, and trading.
• Payhaus is a financial wellbeing app for employees. Started with a salary-on-demand product and developing all kinds of financial benefits while helping companies to build a strong employer brand.
• Henry is a tech & data academy that forms people with no initial investment and a shared income agreement where students pay once they get a job.
• Calm es simple is a bed-in-box startup that offers a completely digital experience to buy a new bed.

For other Argentinean founders to watch, check out this thread.

Argentina startups with exits

Source: LAVCA

2022

• Technisys (acq by SoFi)

2021

• Satellogic/Cantor Fitzgerald — NASDAQ
• MercadoLibre, Post-IPO Equity — MercadoLibre
• Auth0 (acq by Okta)
• Wolox (acq by Accenture)
• Glamit (acq by Accenture)

2020

• Bioceres Crop Solutions, Post-IPO Equity, Bioceres Crop Solitions
• Despegar, Post-IPO Equity — Despegar
• Sirena APP (acq by Zenvia)
• Checkars (acq by Kavak)
• Lagash (acq by MercadoLibre)

Argentina investors

Argentina-based VCs

• *Kaszek is a venture capital firm that partners with exceptional entrepreneurs to build lasting, high-impact technology-based companies whose main focus is Latin America. In addition to capital, Kaszek offers significant strategic guidance, hands-on operational support, and access to local and international networks. The firm is industry and stage agnostic, investing mainly in seed, series A, and series B.
• MrPink VC is VC seed fund that invests in Founders located in Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay, that address large regional or global challenges.
• Troopa — is an investment fund based in Buenos Aires.
• Patagonia Ventures — is a private investment fund focused on early-stage startups. The sectors they focus on are e-commerce, marketplace , mobile, Software/SaaS, among others.
• Oikos — is a venture capital fund that invests in agtech and foodtech sectors.
• NXTP Ventures — This VC fund focuses on early-stage startups. It has a portfolio distributed in more than 10 industries, including fintech, logistics and SaaS.
• Alaya Capital Partners — fund based in Argentina, Chile and the United States. They invest in early-stage startups and focus on e-commerce and adtech startups.
• Draper Cygnus — invests in Deep Tech and Decentralization global companies led by Latino founders.
• Kalei Ventures — is a Latin American venture capital firm on a mission to find outstanding entrepreneurs building global category leaders within the region.
• Newtopia — is a VC firm founded by entrepreneurs that invests in Latin American founders.

Did you know that in Q3 of 2021, the top Spanish-speaking Latin American investor was Argentine Kaszek Ventures?

Source: CBInsights

International LATAM VCs

• Magma Venture Partners is a venture capital firm specializing in early-stage investments.
• Softbank Latin America Fund focuses on investing in companies utilizing technologies like artificial intelligence and scout deals in e-commerce and digital financial services as well as blockchain projects.
• ACCION is a fund focused on fintech seed investing. ACCION invests across Emerging Markets and looks for startups that promote positive impact in society. Some of their portfolio companies are Konfio, Clip, and Henry.
• Endeavor Catalyst is a co-investment fund that invests in qualifying rounds of $5M+ raised by Endeavor Entrepreneurs.
• Softbank Latin America Fund focuses on investing in companies utilizing technologies like artificial intelligence and scout deals in e-commerce and digital financial services as well as blockchain projects.
• Rally Cap Ventures is a fund based on a community of over 240 fintech operators across the world that invest in fintech, mostly infrastructure. Focused on emerging markets pre-seed and seed, and with portfolio companies such as Belvo, Pomelo, and Dinie.
• *Magma Partners is a seed & early-stage micro venture capital fund that invests across Latin America. Best known for Fintech, Proptech, and insurtech, Magma is a generalist firm investing $50,000 to $5M from pre-seed to series A. Notable portfolio companies include Kushki, Albo, Nuvocargo, Billpocket, Fanatiz, Houm, Yana, and more.
• *Monashees is a Brazilian venture capital firm active globally that invests in entrepreneurs committed to creating innovative solutions for a new world. Investing in the beginning stages and following alongside the companies that are revolutionizing markets, creating value, and improving people’s lives through technology.
• Latitud Fund is a pre-seed & seed rolling fund born in 2021 investing across all sectors and geographies in Latin America. Latitud is targeting 15 quarterly investments, the majority of which are coming from the Latitud community of entrepreneurs. Notable investments include Pomelo, BHub, Dinie, Kocomo, Reworth, Clubbi, Finkargo, and many more!

CVCs

• ArFintech — is an investment fund made up of the main institutions of the Argentine banking system, which invests in early-stage fintech startups.
• Eklos — is the startup accelerator of Cervecería y Maltería Quilmes (part of AB InBev), one of the most important beverage companies in the region.
• Globant Ventures — It is the startup accelerator of Globant . They invest in high-impact emerging technology startups and offer an acceleration program with mentorships and co-working spaces, as well as financial support in the form of equity or convertible debt.
• Grupo Supervielle — Supervielle Fintech SUPV1 is the venture capital fund of Grupo Supervielle.
• Latin American Insurance Fund — specializes in startups in the insurance sector.
• Mercado Libre Fund — Mercado Libre’s corporate venture capital fund and invests in early-stage startups in sectors such as logistics, mass consumption, fintech and insurtech.
• Wayra — Movistar’s investment and open innovation arm, at a regional level, and operates through 11 hubs in 10 countries.
• Sancor Seguros Ventures — backs tech entrepreneurs that are looking to grow.
• Primary ventures — CVC arm of Rofex invests in fintech.

Angel investors

• Cygnus Angel Club — is a network that connects startups with angel investors. In addition, it is in charge of accompanying them in their first phases of growth and provides contacts both local and from the United States.
• EMPREAR Business Angels — EMPREAR Business Angels (EBA) is a network of angel investors who meet periodically to listen to the investment proposals of entrepreneurs who have been pre-selected.
• Adventure Club — is an angel investor club based in Cordoba, Argentina.

Argentina accelerators

• Embarca — is an accelerator for startups that have an MVP with users or first sales. It has a Pre-Acceleration program, another Acceleration program and 2 Investor Days a year. Mainly, they invest in sectors such as edtech, fintech, insurtech and blockchain.
• Glocal — It is the first accelerator in Latin America for startups and medium-sized companies in the agtech sector.
• GRIDX — is a business accelerator that selects biotechnology projects to turn them into startups.
• Litoral — is an accelerator of scientific-technological based companies, emerged from the union of the National University of the Litoral, the Technological Park of the Litoral Center, the Santa Fe Stock Exchange and the Santa Fe Industrial Union. It focuses on startups biotechnology, human and animal health, agribusiness, medical devices and equipment, digital health, nanotechnology.
• The Yield Lab — It is an acceleration fund for companies that has its Latam headquarters in Argentina. It invests in Agtech.
• Xpand Ventures — Accelerator of Grupo Clarín
• Yavu Ventures — is an accelerator and venture studio that invests in early stage startups in sectors such as fintech, healthcare, blockchain, urban logistics, IoT, among others. It has a hands-on acceleration model in which companies receive strategic advice, office space, a network of mentors, among others.
• Cites — is an accelerator for scientific projects.

Argentina co-working spaces

• AreaTres El Salvador (Palermo)
• La Maquinita Co (Palermo)
• Huerta (Palermo)
• HIT Cowork (Buenos Aires)
• Workey, La Cupula (Microcentro)
• We Work (Microcentro)
• Ronda Coworking (Belgrano)
• Work/Cafe Santander (Recoleta)
• Belephant (Nuñez)
• Creartribe (La Plata)
• Campus Olegario (Mendoza)
• Whale (Mendoza)
• Torre Emilia (Mendoza)

Additional reading

• Latitud | YC Companies in LATAM by batches
• EBANX | Beyond Borders 2020/2021 Study
• GSMA | The Mobile Economy Latin America
• AMI | Latin America Market Intelligence Research
• Cepal | Enabling Latin America and the Caribbean to better harness e-Commerce and digital trade
• Contxto | Latin American tech, VC, and startup news outlet
• Tracción | Podcast about all-things growth and startups in LatAm

About

Lolita Taub is a GP at Ganas Ventures where she invests in pre-seed and seed community-driven companies in the US and Latin America. With 15 years working within the Silicon Valley ecosystem, she has accomplished $70M+ in sales and made 90+ investments as an angel investor, Scout at Lightspeed Venture Partners, and VC at Backstage Capital and The Community Fund. Lolita is also a Co-Founder of proprietary matching tools Startup-Investor Matching Tool, the GP-LP Matching Tool, and the LaaS community which brings along a community of over 4K+ founders, funders, and ecosystem friends. Forbes and Inc Magazine have featured her as a woman promoting investment in underestimated founders and funders. She has a BA from the University of Southern California and an MBA from the IE Business School. Lolita is currently in LATAM, hunting for unicorns, and most importantly, she is a dog mom to the cutest Dachshund mix, Choco.

Thank you to all contributors: Josh Taub, Valentina Terranova, Claire Diaz, Karin Tanenboim, Santos Barrio, Rhea Fabi, and Santiago Fiaschi.