Hola amig@s fintech,

No matter what’s happening in the world, Argentines, Uruguayans, Paraguayans, and others in the Southern Cone still find time to gather around the region’s first social network: mate. The tradition can seem odd to the uninitiated: a calabash bowl filled with slightly bitter dried leaves, passed from person to person through the same metal straw (without much cleaning in between), and accompanied by a fair amount of slurping. And yet, it is a beautiful and unique collective ritual that creates community and defines identity and belonging. 

And while time can feel slower around mate, the region is moving fast, especially when it comes to AI. In this edition, you will find news showing how AI is becoming part of everyday fintech infrastructure, from payments and credit to fraud, data, and autonomous commerce. Of course, you will also see the most important deals, launches, and policy moves in LatAm.

🩵 We will see you back here next week!

~Vivi

Feedback?  Reach out to us anytime! This week it’s Elena on read, post, and podcast of the week, funding, exists, other news and deeper reads, Carlos on policy, and product launches and partnerships, and Vivi on editing.

| TWIF Community 

🗓️ Events

🗣️ Channels

| Stat of the Week 

LatAm makes up around 8 % of the world’s economy but only 2.8 % of global insurance premiums, pointing to a large gap in coverage. The graphic compares insurance spend per person, showing most LatAm markets well below global and OECD levels. Digital adoption is becoming central for insurers in the region, as technology and new distribution channels are needed to reach more customers. Low penetration combined with this digital shift creates clear opportunities for insurtechs to expand access. 

|  Read of the Week 

The article “Local Payment Preferences in LatAm” by Altenar, highlights that over 50% of consumers prefer local payment methods over international cards, with wide differences across countries. It notes that digital wallets and real-time payments are growing at double-digit rates, even as cash remains relevant in some markets. The post suggests that fintechs integrating local payment rails, consumer-preferred options, and automated reconciliation are better positioned to expand market share, support financial inclusion and deliver smoother payment experiences across the region.

| Post of the Week 

| Podcast of the Week

| Venture Financing 

💰 Equity

🇨🇱 Xepelin, the Chilean SME-focused company offering working capital, invoice financing, and B2B financial services across Latin America, raised a $20 million strategic bridge round led by Nazca Ventures. The funding will support its expansion into Mexico as it seeks a Sofipo license.

🇨🇱 Hogarízate, a Chilean proptech focused on helping customers buy homes, raised US$5 million in a strategic investment from MetLife and Ameris’ impact fund. The funding will help the company scale its model and expand access to housing for underserved segments.

💵 Debt 

🇺🇸 Jeeves, the global corporate financial infrastructure platform for expense management and corporate cards, secured a $100 million structured financing facility from Community Investment Management (CIM).

| Venture funds 

🌎Startuplinks & Cuantico VP, launched a new $10 million venture fund targeting early-stage startups in Latin America, with a focus on fintech, proptech, web3, and deep tech. 

🇧🇷 TQI Ventures announced a new venture capital fund backed by Brazilian angel investors and ecosystem partners, aimed at investing in early-stage fintechs and tech startups in Brazil. 

🇺🇾 Horizon AI, the Uruguayan AI solutions platform, raised US $3.5 million in a seed round. The company develops AI tools for financial services, banking, and insurance.

🇨🇴 ColCapital, the Colombian Association for Private Capital representing private equity and venture capital firms, announced a strategic investment from Rockstar Latin America to strengthen its work supporting early-stage tech startups.

| Exits 

🤝 M&A - Fintech

🇨🇱 ComunidadFeliz, the Chilean platform for condominium and property management, agreed to be acquired by Visma in a deal valued at close to US$70 million. The transaction supports ComunidadFeliz’s plans to continue expanding across Latin America.

| Product Launches & Partnerships 

💻 Fintech

🇦🇷 Mercado Pago, the digital payments arm of Mercado Libre, launched a new AI-powered financial assistant inside its app. The tool uses artificial intelligence to help users manage payments and get personalized guidance on their finances.

🇦🇷 Ualá, the Argentine digital financial unicorn, expanded its ecosystem with the launch of 100% life and personal accident insurance in partnership with Allianz, the global insurer. 

🇦🇷 Banco Comafi, an Argentine bank, and 123Seguro, an online insurance comparison platform, announced a strategic partnership to simplify auto insurance enrollment. The initiative uses an omnichannel model combining 123Seguro’s technology with the bank’s distribution network.

🇦🇷 MODO, the Argentine digital payments network aggregator, launched Pix payments in Brazil. The service allows its 20 million users to make instant QR-based payments in reais directly from their bank apps, using real-time currency conversion and without opening foreign accounts.

🇨🇴 Wasticredit, a Colombian digital credit provider, announced a partnership with Nuvei, the global payment technology provider. The collaboration aims to strengthen transaction traceability and real-time monitoring to improve compliance and security across the transaction lifecycle.

🌎Pana, the U.S.-based fintech financial infrastructure platform, launched the Pana Global Card.  The platinum card provides instant access to funds across the U.S. and Latin America through a unified account, that seeks to become an alternative to traditional remittances.

🏦 Financial Services & Banking 

🇲🇽 inDrive, the global mobility and services platform, partnered with OXXO to expand its presence in southeast Mexico.

| Policy

🇧🇷 The Organization of Brazilian Cooperatives (OCB) assumed the rotating presidency of the Open Finance board for a ten-week term. The move marks the rollout of a permanent governance structure created in 2025 that alternates leadership among 11 industry associations.

🇧🇷 Visa Conecta, Visa’s Brazilian subsidiary, received authorization from the Central Bank of Brazil to operate in the foreign exchange market. The approval allows the company to add FX buying and selling to its existing Open Finance and Pix initiation services.

🇧🇷 Asaas, a financial solutions platform for SMEs, received authorization from the Central Bank of Brazil to operate as a finance company (financeira).

🇧🇷 Avenue, the U.S.-focused brokerage owned by Itaú, obtained an investment bank license from the Central Bank of Brazil and announced a new office in São Paulo. The license grants greater autonomy in foreign exchange operations and supports expansion of cross-border financing products.

| Other News 

🔄Leadership changes

🇲🇽 Clara appointed Jorge de Lara as President for Mexico to lead its next phase of growth. De Lara will focus on expanding commercial operations and strengthening Clara’s presence in the Mexican market.

🇧🇷 Loggi appointed Viviane Sales as CEO, marking the start of a new phase for the company. Sales takes on the role as Loggi looks to consolidate operations and move toward a more sustainable growth cycle.

🇲🇽 Our very own, Elena Cruz Lorenzo, was named Head of new technologies at Afirme Financial Group.

🇧🇷 PicPay, the Brazilian payments and digital wallet platform, filed for a US IPO, signalling plans to raise capital in US markets.

🌎 Visa, projects a mass adoption of AI-driven payment agents by 2026, with generative AI and machine learning enabling personalized checkout, contextual payments and virtual assistants.

🇲🇽 Círculo de Crédito, a private credit bureau in Mexico highlighted the growing role of data quality in expanding access to credit. 

🇨🇴 GoPass, the Colombian mobility and toll payment platform, reported a doubling of transaction volume compared with 2024. The company’s service covers 91 % of toll booths in the country.

| Deeper Reads  

• Inside agentic commerce: A new way to transact raises new questions. The article explores how agentic commerce, where AI agents carry out transactions for users, is moving toward real-world use. It argues that adoption will depend on shared standards for consent, security, identity, and accountability to build trust in autonomous payments.
• CES 2026 was all about ‘physical AI’ and robots, robots, robots. This is not a read, but an interesting podcast episode exploring how the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026 signaled a shift from software-focused AI to physical AI, with robots and embodied systems moving to the forefront. 
• Women face structural barriers to accessing mortgage credit (ES) The article examines how structural factors such as income gaps, informal employment, and unpaid caregiving responsibilities continue to limit women’s access to mortgage credit in Mexico. It explains how traditional risk assessments and lending requirements often overlook these realities, disproportionately affecting women applicants
• SMEs find a new source of credit in fintech (ES) The article looks at how fintech platforms are reshaping access to credit for small and medium-sized businesses by offering faster, more flexible financing than traditional banks. It highlights the role of data-driven lending, factoring, and invoice-based products in easing liquidity constraints for SMEs. 

📣 LatAm fintech enthusiasts looking for a new role, check out https://jobs.thisweekinfintech.com

Made in LatAm with 🩵by 

Elena, Head of New Technologies at Afirme Financial Group

Carlos, ESG Analyst at CFECapital

Vivi, Communication expert and Principal at Areté Consulting

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