Chipax, Como Quiero and Agrapp will each receive US$60,000 and will join an acceleration program.
Despite the economic consequences of the pandemic, the startup investment ecosystem is continuing to produce new deals, including different Chilean firms that have raised capital in this context.
The Mexico City office of the global venture capital investment fund, 500 Startups, based in Mountain View, California, recently announced that the fund will invest US$600,000 in ten ventures in Latin America: three in Chile, five in Mexico and two in Argentina, which will each receive US$60,000 for their scale-up.
The Chilean startups selected have in common a strong technological component. Agrapp developed a platform that allows farmers to manage their business; Chipax created an online cash flow control platform for small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs), and Como Quiero implemented a weekly household menu planning platform with a one-click shopping list.
“We chose these three startups for the quality of the entrepreneurs; we discovered founders who are good at what they are doing and have a clear understanding of the industry with multidisciplinary profiles that complement each other. We see an opportunity in their respective industries,” says René Lomelí, one of the partners in 500 Startups.
Lomelí notes that the fund has so far invested in 13 Chilean firms, including ClassRoom TV, Simpliroute and Welcu, which are part of the regional portfolio of 175 startups of the global venture capital firm created in 2010.
Acceleration program
Along with the funding, the ten firms - which were selected out of 1,957 applications - will be part of the twelfth generation of 500 Startups and will join a 16-week acceleration program that traditionally takes place in its offices in Mexico City. This time, however, the fund has opted to implement it 100% remotely in response to Covid-19.
The program, which began last week, has two main pillars: “professionalization as founders with international mentors and weekly monitoring of the startups as regards sales growth, for example,” explains Lomelí.
Source: Diario Financiero
To find out more about investment in global services in Chile, read this article.
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