Some of the biggest investment news in 2013 came from the technology sector and from startups across the globe. While the US, Europe and Asia still dominate the market with new startups launching every day, Latin America is bursting with innovation.
Startup Stock Exchange, a pioneer exchange and crowdfunding vehicle dedicated to startups, is experiencing tremendous demand and development in Latin America. In 2013 there were over 100 new companies that applied for seed investment funding. Additionally AngelList, an online social media community dedicated to linking investors with startups, has over 4,000 companies from Latin America alone.
Here are my top five startups to keep an eye on in 2014.
Puerto Finanzas – Argentina
Puerto Finanzas is at the top of my list, as it combines two sectorsthat are rising within the startup industry: Investment and Social Media. Puerto Finanzas enables users to connect with financial sector experts, companies and fellow investors. The site features social media techniques in order to be up-to-date with the latest investment trends such as following stocks, advisors, companies orinternal blogs by selected members. www.puertofinanzas.com
Nubelo-Chile
Nubelo is an online employment platform focused on Latin America. Companies and direct clients can hire freelance professionals invarious industries and evaluate the right candidates for each project. Nubelo also takes care of the hiring, tracking and even payment of the freelancer. Nubelo is now well established in the market and everyone is looking forward to new developments in Brazil and the rest of Latin America. www.nubelo.com
Cine Papaya – Peru
Cine Papaya is both a platform for online and mobile sales of movietickets and an online community for movie lovers. The cinema marketis well-established in Latin America, and Cine Papaya is making it easier to know what is available without suffer through long lines at the movie theater. www.cinepapaya.com
Tripfab – Costa Rica/USA
Tripfab is a collaboration between entrepreneurs from Costa Rica and the United States to create an online travel platform that connects travellers directly with travel businesses without the need for online or offline travel agents, or any other middleman involved. The niche exists because the most desired travel destinations in LatinAmerica are not currently offered via the large online travel agencies. www.tripfab.com
Unipay – Brazil
UniPay allows merchants to accept credit cards with a mobile application. The payment system is fast growing all over Latin America and being able to accept payments via credit card is good for both businesses and consumers. UniPay is growing very fast and I look forward to their growth in 2014. www.unipay.com.br
By Jonathan Rivas, Managing Partner of DCDB Group