LatAm Fintech Forum

LatAm Fintech Forum
Name	LatAm Fintech Forum
Type	Nonprofit organization
Founded	2018
Headquarters	Mexico City
Region served	Latin America

LatAm Fintech Forum LatAm Fintech Forum is a regional platform for fintech stakeholders in Latin America that connects startups, investors, regulators, accelerators, and multilateral institutions. The Forum convenes cohorts from Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Peru, and other jurisdictions alongside global partners such as World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, International Monetary Fund, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Mastercard. It facilitates policy dialogues with regulators and legislators from nations including Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Chile while engaging corporate partners such as BBVA, Santander, Visa, and PayPal.

Overview

The Forum positions itself as a bridge among fintech entrepreneurs, venture capital firms, accelerator programs, and public institutions, drawing comparisons to initiatives like Startup Grind, Y Combinator, Plug and Play Tech Center, Seedcamp, and 500 Startups. Its membership includes fintechs in payments, lending, insurtech, regtech, wealthtech, and blockchain sectors, often showcased alongside unicorns such as Nubank, MercadoLibre, StoneCo, and Konfio. Partners and sponsors have included multinational banks like HSBC and Citigroup and technology firms like Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, and Stripe.

History and Development

Founded in 2018 by a coalition of entrepreneurs, investors, and policy advocates, the Forum emerged amid regional acceleration following successes by companies like Nubank and Mercado Pago. Early convenings featured leaders from accelerators such as Endeavor, Seedstars, and Wayra and investors from Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and SoftBank. Over time it expanded programming in partnership with multilateral entities including CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and IDB Invest, and engaged regulatory sandboxes inspired by initiatives from Financial Conduct Authority and Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Events and Conferences

The Forum organizes annual summits, investor days, regulatory roundtables, and demo days, often co-hosted with chambers and trade bodies like AmCham Mexico, Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), and Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (FIESP). Notable speakers have included executives from Nubank, MercadoLibre, iFood, RappiPay, as well as policymakers formerly affiliated with institutions such as Banco de México, Banco Central do Brasil, Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio, and Comisión Nacional Bancaria y de Valores. The Forum’s events have featured case studies involving projects by Clip, Ualá, C6 Bank, and Kueski and panels with investors from Accel Partners, SoftBank Latin America Fund, QED Investors, and Kaszek Ventures.

Key Projects and Initiatives

Initiatives have included accelerator cohorts, regulatory sandboxes liaison programs, research collaborations with think tanks like Brookings Institution and Center for Strategic and International Studies, and pilot programs with payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard. It has launched mentorship partnerships with incubators like Startup Mexico and Cubo Itaú and supported interoperability pilots referencing standards from ISO and blockchain consortia similar to Hyperledger. Project partners have included remittance operators like Western Union and WorldRemit, alternative credit providers like Konfio and Creditas, and insurance startups comparable to Betterfly.

Governance and Organizational Structure

The Forum is governed by a board comprised of fintech founders, venture capitalists, and representatives from partner institutions, echoing governance models used by entities such as Endeavor Global and Latin American Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (LAVCA). Executive leadership typically coordinates with advisory councils drawing members from central banks, securities commissions, and trade associations including ABFintechs, Brazilian Securities Commission (CVM), CNBV, and SII Chile. Operational teams liaise with academic partners like Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Fundación Getulio Vargas, and Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile for research and talent pipelines.

Impact on Latin American Fintech Ecosystem

The Forum has contributed to deal flow by connecting startups to investors such as SoftBank, QED Investors, Monashees, and Kaszek Ventures, and has supported market entry strategies for scaleups expanding between Mexico City, São Paulo, and Bogotá. Its policy convenings influenced regulatory dialogues comparable to reforms seen in sandbox policies of Colombia and Peru, and have been cited in white papers by IDB Invest and CAF. The Forum’s mentorship and demo days have highlighted scaling stories akin to Nubank and MercadoPago and facilitated partnerships between fintechs and incumbents such as BBVA and Santander.

Criticism and Challenges

Critics note potential conflicts of interest where sponsor relationships with firms like Visa and Mastercard might shape agendas, echoing debates around industry-led forums such as World Economic Forum. Observers have also pointed to uneven representation of smaller markets like Bolivia, Paraguay, and Honduras and the persistence of structural barriers highlighted by reports from World Bank and IMF. Challenges include coordination across fragmented regulatory regimes exemplified by divergent approaches taken by Banco Central do Brasil, Banco de México, and Superintendencia de Banca, Seguros y AFP and sustaining funding models amid shifting venture capital cycles influenced by players like Sequoia Capital and SoftBank.

Category:Financial technology Category:Organizations established in 2018