The fund will benefit more than 30 innovative startups in Latin America and the Caribbean with great development potential and capacity for social transformation
The innovation laboratory of the Inter-American Development Bank, IDB Lab, has made an investment in Monashees X, a Brazilian fund specializing in entrepreneurial capital, to promote the growth, consolidation, and expansion of more than 30 technological startups in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The fund will focus on startups with innovative, scalable models and the capacity to impact large market sectors with efficiency challenges, such as financial services, education, health, logistics, emerging technologies, or solutions for small and medium-sized companies.
This operation follows IDB Lab's renewed investment thesis of promoting regional integration and knowledge transfer from more mature venture capital markets to emerging ones. The selected startups will receive financing and support in identifying talent, designing their business strategy, expanding their operations to other countries in the region, attracting new sources of investment, or implementing environmental, social, or governance aspects (ESG).
IDB Lab has been a pioneer in the LAC venture capital industry, where it has invested in more than one hundred funds since 1996. It currently has an active portfolio of investments in 54 funds that, in turn, have financed more than 700 companies. In 2021, to expand the venture capital markets and help close the persistent gap in early financing, it launched a call for venture capital funds in the region. Monashees X, among others, was selected.
Including the previous nine early-stage funds, Monashees has made over 130 startup investments, with 14 reaching the status of "unicorn company" or $1 billion valuation. Monashees X will diversify its portfolio towards sectors with great growth and impact potential and expand its presence in LAC beyond Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia, where it has already deployed initial investments.
About IDB Lab
IDB Lab is the innovation laboratory of the IDB Group, the leading source of development finance and know-how for improving lives in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The purpose of IDB Lab is to drive innovation for inclusion in the region by mobilizing financing, knowledge, and connections to test early-stage solutions with the potential to transform the lives of vulnerable populations affected by economic, social, and/or environmental factors. Since 1993 IDB Lab has approved more than US$ 2 billion in projects deployed across 26 LAC countries. www.idblab.org
About Monashees
Pioneering Venture Capital firm in Latin America in alliance with prominent founders who are revolutionizing large markets, Monashees works with entrepreneurs from their earliest stage and continues to support their growth through its expansion funds. With a human approach, Monashees supports founders to challenge the status quo and improve people's quality of life through technology. The Monashees community includes more than 130 companies and 300 founders. www.monashees.com
Manzano Guillen, Maria De Gador
