Financing watch: Tivit’s fintech move, AI and insurtechs, new M&As and more

Brazilian IT multinational Tivit invested 25mn reais (US$4.42mn) in structuring a new business unit focused on financial services.

Branded Tivit Techfin, the unit is an evolution of TBankS, a platform that has been part of Tivit's portfolio since 2021, the company said in a statement. Tivit expects to double financial services revenues following the revamp.

The platform was developed to work through APIs, allowing the sending and receiving of information in an integrated manner with any bank. The solution is regulated by Brazil's central bank.

Tivit's renewed bet on financial services mirrors that of other large Brazilian tech companies, such as Totvs (Totvs Techfin arm), and telcos like Telefônica.

Chilean biotech harvests fresh funding 

Chilean biotech Botanical Solution secured US$7.6mn in funding, part of a follow-up to a series A round closed in August last year.

Taking into account past fundings, the total raised to date is US$23mn. Investors’ names were not disclosed.

Botanical has developed a proprietary solution that enhances crop nurturing and enables "sustainable supply of key botanical products," it said.

More capital for Mexico’s Minu 

Mexican HR and employee wellness startup Minu received a new, undisclosed investment from fund QED Investors through the acquisition of series A-3 preferred shares.

In 2021, Swedish fund VEF led a series A round of US$14mn in the company. In 2023, Minu raised a further US$30mn from QED and other investors.

Sankhya clinches third acquisition of 2024

Brazilian ERP firm Sankhya closed its third acquisition of this year with the takeover of local HR software firm Vixting. The value was not made public.

Previous Sankhya deals in the year included firms Espresso and Asis. The latest purchase is the company's eighth in four years. 

The move is part of a strategy to hit 1bn reais (US$176mn) in revenue by 2025 and prepare for an IPO.

Founded in 1989, Sankhya competes with Totvs, Senior and Linx, among others, and reports over 2,000 employees, with 20,000 customers in 26 states.

M&As on the rise?

The M&A landscape in Brazil during the first half of the year saw a slight improvement in comparison with the same period 2023, according to PwC.

Operations grew by 2% in volume in January to June. Globally, they would have fallen by 14%, said the consultancy in a release.

PwC did not provide details on the Brazilian deals. The global M&A report can be found here. 

El Salvador’s Ábaco

El Salvador fintech Ábaco, which focuses on corporate expenses management for Central American firms, closed a US$4mn pre-seed round.

The investment was made by six VC groups: Caricaco Ventures, Cacao Capital, Innogen Capital Ventures, Invariantes Fund, Mercy Corps Ventures and Bridge Latam, as well as several regional business groups.

The proceeds will be used to develop new financial technology products, open new markets in Latin America and expand its customer base.

Magie’s seed round

Brazilian fintech Magie closed a seed round with an additional 22mn reais (US$3.89mn) to expand its WhatsApp-based financial services.

The investment was led by US fund Lux Capital and adds to a previous investment of 6mn reais from Brazilian fund Canary.

The fintech facilitates financial transactions, allowing users to make Pix payments, pay bills and carry out several other banking operations simply by sending messages or audios via the application.

Insurtechs and genAI

ComparaOnline, a company dedicated to the comparison and selection of insurance and financial products with operations in Brazil, Chile and Colombia, was deemed the first regional insurtech to incorporate genAI in its operations.

That is according to the Latam Insurtech Journey 2024 report by consulting firm Digital Insurance LatAm.

ComparaOnline uses AI to support and strengthen its sales teams and in customer relations. The platforms employed for such purposes were not detailed.

According to the report, Latin America has a total of 498 insurtechs, with Brazil leading with 203, followed by Argentina with 83, Chile with 72, Colombia with 67, Peru with 32, Central America with 27 and Ecuador with 23.

Antler fund invests in Brazilian startups

Global venture capital fund Antler selected eight Brazilian startups for its fourth investment cycle in the country, reported outlet PEGN.

They are: Agrovisia, Elephan, Futuriza, Kolek, Machina Sports, Tistto, ViaVan and Vulkan.

The investments are around US$125,000 per initiative, for US$1mn total.

Pátria goes crypto

Pátria Investimentos invested 11mn reais in token and digital assets expert Liqi, marking its entry into the cryptocurrency market.

The investment is the first of Pátria’s fourth venture capital fund. It is also part of an extension of a series A received by Liqi.