LatamList – WeXchange recently announced the 12 finalists selected from close to 900 applicants to participate in its annual Pitch Competition. The finals of the competition will take place during the eighth edition of the WeXchange forum which will be held virtually on November 11th.
The WeXchange platform is an initiative of the IDB Lab that connects high-growth entrepreneurs from Latin America and the Caribbean with mentors and investors. This year’s competition also has the support of the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) and Microsoft for Startups LATAM.
Since its inception in 2013, WeXchange has held annual forums in various Latin American countries offering regional entrepreneurs the opportunity to access mentors and investors, participate in training sessions and inspirational talks, and apply to the Pitch Competition.
Under the motto ‘Women STEMpreneurs Thriving in Challenging Times’, this year’s competition will connect the most dynamic and innovative entrepreneurs in the region with potential investment opportunities.
This year the highest number of applications came from startups in Colombia, Mexico, Chile, and Peru. Two basic requirements for the competition were, first, that ventures had to be operating in Latin America and the Caribbean, and second, their scalable product or service had to be related to STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).
A large portion of the startups that applied belonged to the Information and Communications Technology industry followed by EdTech, FinTech, HealthTech, Logistics, AgTech, BioTech.
This edition of the competition had two categories: Seed/Pre-Series A and Series A/B. On November 11th, six finalists from each category will be pitching in front of a jury of international investors composed of the IDB Lab and partner funds including 500 Startups, ALLVP, Angel Ventures, Carao Ventures, Cometa, Dila Capital, Magma Partners, NXTP Ventures, Redpoint eVentures, and Vulcano.
The 12 selected finalists for both categories are:
Seed Category:
Fintech
- Cynthia Villar, Founder and CEO of MiBolsillo (Peru), a digital financial trainer that helps organize and manage personal finances in a very easy and practical way.
- Mariana Boot, Founder of Akredito (Brazil), an online platform where people in debt find a solution to refinance and consolidate their debt in sustainable installments.
- Omaira Saucedo, Co-Founder and CSO of tuGerente (Bolivia), all-in-one software for SMEs to manage daily operations and finances.
- Victoria Blanco, Founder and CEO of Abaco (Colombia), a fintech startup that has developed a new risk scoring tool focused on gig-economy freelancers.
Logistics
- Ivonne Quiñones, Co-Founder and CEO of Aimo (Peru), a technology platform that powers logistics with integrated data and real-time operations.
EdTech
- Renata Betti, Co-Founder of Talent Academy (Brazil), a people analytics and employee experience startup that helps increase people’s engagement and connection with work.
Pre-Series A and Series A/B Category:
FinTech
- Anabel Perez, CEO of NovoPayment (Venezuela), a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) solution that enables high-demand financial service use cases for a diverse set of customers across the Americas.
Logistics
- Daniela Izquierdo, Co-Founder of Foodology (Colombia), a startup building a portfolio of digital brands designed to create the perfect food delivery experience.
- Juliana Sarmiento, Co-Founder and CRO at EnvioClick (Colombia), a cloud-based shipping solution, connecting any freight or parcel courier with business in Latin America.
Cybersecurity
- Oriana Fuentes, Co-Founder and COO of Emptor (Peru), a B2B SaaS solution for vetting individuals and entities for hiring, lending, and transacting in Latin America.
Big Data
- Pamela Scheurer, Co-Founder and CTO of Nubimetrics (Argentina), a SaaS Big Data & Predictive Analytics Solution for eCommerce.
AgTech
- Tatiana Malvasio, COO of Kilimo (Argentina), an artificial intelligence solution that by combining satellite, weather and field information calculates how much water a crop consumes per day.
The WeXchange forum will be held virtually on November 11th. Admission is free upon prior registration for entrepreneurs, investors, and people interested in the innovation ecosystem.
Register here as tickets are limited.