B* better have my money

‍Is this a men's world?

By this date, we assume you've already read the 2021 Latin American Women Founders Fundraising Report released by Harlem Capital last year – if you have not, just so you know, we're publicly judging you.

👉 The nice TL;DR: 128 Latin American women founded or co-founded startups that raised US$4B+ in 2021.

👉 The shitty TL;DR: Startups created only by men raised US$13B from VC funding, while mixed-gender teams raised US$3.9B. In the meantime, all-women teams only raised US$38M. Yes, that's an M, not a B.

Are you saying female founders did receive funding, but mostly when they also had male co-founders?

You got it, Chad.

As the report states: "While there have been some incredible gains for women who have founded companies alongside men, there is a huge capital gap for all-women-founded startups in the region."

💥 Although the gender gap persists in LatAm, Latinas have what it takes to climb the ladder and pursue opportunities in entrepreneurship, and that's just FACTS. I mean, part of their stamina is that they are kinda sick with all this situation and are proudly giving Rihanna vibes.

And so…

Where are the Latinas female founders?

According to Bloomberg Línea, female-founded startups in Brazil🇧🇷 and Mexico🇲🇽 combined received 91% of the capital raised by female-led LatAm companies in 2021. They are followed by Colombia🇨🇴 and Argentina🇦🇷 in terms of number of investments in startups.

Who are they?

Women with advanced degrees, some of whom hold the CEO role at their companies. Women in financial services, software, agriculture, and biotechnology.

Some of them are Chiara Sheldon, co-founder & COO of Reworth; Angela María Acosta, founder & CEO of Morado; Cristina Junqueira, co-founder of Nubank; Marlene Garayzar, co-founder & CGO of Stori Card; Suzy Ferreira, co-founder & CEO of Dinie; Gina Gotthilf, co-founder & COO of Latitud; and Brynne McNulty Rojas, co-founder & CEO of Habi, just to mention a few.

Is it possible that I could be one of them?

YES, NATALIA, PLEASE.

💪 We are on a mission to bring more bad-ass entrepreneurial women together. But unfortunately, the percentage of female founders in our community remains low.

Do we blame the imposter syndrome, the old patriarchy villain, and the global truth that women have to work TWICE as hard as our male friends? Do you really need an answer to that, Gustavo?

Whatever the reason, we need the help of our community to change this.

🚀 If you know any female founders or soon-to-be founders ready to run the world, give them a push our way and let them know about us

Female founders out there, you're still on time to kick-start your journey! 💫

And if you ARE a female founder, reach us, work work work, and make RiRi proud!

Ok, ladies, now let's get in formation

We're glad to announce that we've launched a new Women's Fundraising Breakfast Club for all our female community at Latitud.

Why only women? Because the challenges aren't the same and hearing from your equals makes all the difference in the world 💙.

This bi-weekly club will bring ideas, tips, and opportunities to fine-tune our fellows' pitch in a supportive, safe, and deconstructed space.

What's in it for our female founders?

• Pre-reading materials for optimal learning and discussion.
• Insights shared by our in-house VC/rockstar/slayer/goddess Naiane Pontes, as well as some other Latituders and guests.
• Open space for sharing reflections, asking questions, and learning from other women's experiences and perspectives.

If you're already a fellow, we hope to see you there!

Let's empower each other to master fundraising with ease, no matter the obstacles we face 💪.

🎙️ Women talking

The first step is to actually listen, y'know?

Marlene Garayzar, co-founder & CGO of Stori

Last year, Stori became the ninth unicorn in Mexico after raising a US$ 150M equity and debt round. With it, Marlene Garayzar, CGO & and co-founder, became the first Mexican woman to found a unicorn company in the country.

In this episode, Marlene talks about the scenario of credit access in Mexico, how Stori started, the challenges fintech faces daily, and what's next for Stori and the fintech sector in Latin America.

Check her episode

Loreanne Garcia, co-founder & CPO of Kavak

Loreanne Garcia, her brother Carlos and their co-founder Roger founded Kavak, the online platform for buying and selling secondhand cars. With a $4B valuation, Kavak became the first Mexican unicorn in 2020.

In this episode, she talks about how Kavak measures and regulates its culture, how they managed to create a mote from complexity, and her advice on fundraising from the right investors.

Check her episode

Maite Muniz, co-founder of Truora

Truora, the Colombian startup that offers businesses tailored digital authentication solutions got US$15M in a Series A round. One of its founders is Maite Muniz, responsible for managing product strategy, research & development, and customer relationships.

In this episode, she with us the challenges involved in scaling authentication solutions, and how to work intentionally to level the playing field for women in tech.

Check her episode

⛵ Hot News Ahoy!

(Hot for February 2023)

👏 Valentina Valencia is in the house

Vaas, the debt management platform founded by Colombian Valentina Valencia, raised a US$5M seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) from Silicon Valley, Nazca from Mexico, Maya Capital from Brazil, and Latitud (us!).

Marathon Ventures and angel investors Sebastián Mejía, co-founder of Rappi, and Brynne McNulty Rojas, co-founder of Habi, also joined the round. What a group!

🍒 Pomelo teamed up!

Littio, the platform that allows the creation of a global account in digital dollars, announced a new technological solution in partnership with Mastercard and Pomelo. It is a credit card – which means that would be the first in Colombia backed by this currency.

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-> Every time one of your friends subscribes to our Newsletter, a female founder succeeds ✨ So ask them to subscribe!