Since last March, when it announced an Innovation Fund of up to 5 billion dollars focused exclusively on the region, SoftBank has been on the lips of Mexican entrepreneurs and investment funds.
A great first impression
“In the next 30 days SoftBank will invest more than all investment funds in Mexico have invested throughout the year”, said Marcelo Claure, Executive Director of SoftBank Group International on his first visit to the country, in which he met with Federal authorities and major private equity funds.
The manager estimates that in the next days 200 million dollars from the Fund will be injected into startups that have emerged in Mexico.
This Japanese conglomerate with telecommunications and internet companies, now includes in its strategy to promote the development of technology companies, for which it has created a fund oriented to Latin America, which is managed by Claure.
The incredible growth of SoftBank
During 2017 and the first half of 2018, thousand 400 million dollars were invested throughout Latin America in 201 venture capital projects, of which only 150 million were located in Mexico, through 81 projects, according to data from the Alejandro Association Mendoza of Private Equity Investments in Latin America (LAVCA).
With Softbank’s plans, the risk capital accumulated in Mexico in that period would double this year. In the Country, it seeks companies that, through artificial intelligence and data, can create solutions in sectors such as financial services, electronic commerce, medical care, mobility and insurance, among others.
In an interview, Claure revealed that in addition to his investment in Mexican Fintech Clip, announced a couple of months ago, for between 20 and 50 million dollars, he has already chosen two other companies to immediately capitalize on them.
“We are going for two significant investments. One related to financial inclusion for small and medium enterprises and another with the market for buying and selling used cars, which in this country is huge, is worth more than 60 billion dollars, but it is extremely complex”, he says.
Industry sources say they are startups Konfío and Kavak
“I decided to come personally to meet with Mexican entrepreneurs and I am extremely surprised. Here there is an impressive human capital, great ideas, high impact companies. However, I am shocked by the lack of capital to help entrepreneurs, I see that it has been painful to grow their businesses due to the lack of fresh resources”, he says.
Also published on Medium.