(Bloomberg) — Argentine fintech company Ualá has raised $300 million from investors at a valuation of $2.75 billion, the latest funding haul for one of the most valuable startups in Latin America.
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The Series E round was led by Allianz X, the venture capital arm of Germany’s insurance giant Allianz SE, which hadn’t invested in Latin America previously. Other new investors include Stone Ridge Holdings Group, Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Holdings, billionaire Alan Howard, Mexican family office Rodina and Claure Group.
Existing investors such as George Soros’ Soros Fund Management, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, SoftBank Group Corp. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. also participated in the round.
“We’re going to use this to scale Argentina, where my goal is to be the largest bank in the country, not just by users but by book,” founder and Chief Executive Officer Pierpaolo Barbieri said in an interview. As it expands, Ualá “does not rule out” growth in other markets, and is open to acquisitions, the CEO said. The funds will also be used “for the expansion of business units in both Mexico and in Colombia.”
The company was last valued at $2.45 billion after a $350 million funding round in 2021.
Barbieri said the increased valuation in the latest round “shows confidence” in Ualá’s potential, adding, “We’re very proud to be able to show leadership in the region.” The company will seek to be profitable in all markets before eyeing an initial public offering in the US, he said.
The funding round comes amid a challenging environment for Latin American startups, with investors staying on the sidelines as interest rates in the US remain high relative recent years. The region saw limited VC dealmaking in the third quarter and relatively few recent acquisitions or new public offerings, according to data from PitchBook.
Regional Reach
Ualá, the largest startup in Argentina, has 8 million users. About 6 million of those are located in its home country, a user base that represents more than 17% of Argentina’s adult population. Launched in 2017 with a debit card, the company now offers a series of products including payments, credit, merchant acquiring and investments. Most recently, demand has been “crazy” for dollar-denominated accounts, Barbieri said, with 100,000 account openings in the first five days of the offering, even though only half a million users were given the option.
