The rise of fintech innovation and demand for online banking tools amid the pandemic has propelled Latin America to undergo a digital transformation.
"Fintech has continued to grow in scope and impact on the venture capital landscape, and Latin America is no exception to that," said Ben Savage, a partner at Clocktower Technology Ventures. Last month, the Santa Monica, Calif.-based firm announced the launch of its first fund focused on investing in Latin America's financial services sector. Four years ago, fintech startups in Latin America secured just shy of $236 million in investment from venture capitalists, according to PitchBook data. That number soared to more than $1.7 billion across 123 deals in 2019. And that growth in VC financing stayed steady last year, as adoption of digital tools increased among Latin American consumers during the pandemic: Over 40 million people in the region were added to the banking ecosystem over five months during 2020, according to research released in October by Americas Market Intelligence in partnership with Mastercard.