Miami to become new hub for Chilean venture capital funds

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Little by little, this Florida city has become a new hub for innovation. During the pandemic, many of the large U.S. venture capital funds that were based in California or New York migrated to the capital of Florida.

In many cases, remote work proved to investors that they could work from anywhere. Miami offers greater tax benefits than other large cities, a better quality of life, and a privileged climate.

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This phenomenon has benefited both investors and startup creators, as it is a destination that has substantial commercial, cultural and social ties with the region. Moreover, due to the availability of flights and the time zone, the city is very convenient for Latin Americans.

In addition, Miami makes it possible to generate business networks with other countries in the region, but in one place.

Adding to the possibility of accessing U.S. capital much more quickly from Miami, all this has made it an attractive destination for venture capital funds. That is why at least four Chilean venture capital vehicles have opened offices: Fen Ventures, Taram Capital, Genesis Ventures, and Manutara Ventures.

THE FUNDS

Fen Ventures’ partners are managing partner Cristóbal Silva and partners Ricardo Levy, Tomás Délano and Andrea Araneda. To date, they manage US$ 50 million and expect the figure to increase to US$ 80 million during the first half of 2022, by which time they estimate that they will have raised all the resources planned for their Fund III.

Among the Chilean startups in which Fen Ventures has invested are AGF Fintual, Migrante, Destácame, Políglota and Reveniu.

The assets under management of Genesis Ventures reach US$250 million, and some of the local firms in which they have invested are Amipass, Wenu Work, Predictable Media, and Instacrops. Its partners are Rodrigo Castro, Andres Meirovich, and Jose Luis Barrientos.

The Taram Capital fund landed in Miami in February 2020; its assets under management reach US$20 million, and its partners are Felipe Camposano and Christian Onetto. Some of the Chilean companies in its portfolio are AGF Focus, Webdox, YAPP, and Teselagen.

Another of the local funds established in Miami is Manutara Ventures. It manages some US$ 18 million, and its partners Ricardo Donoso, Cristian Olea, and Pablo Traub are in the process of raising US$100 million more with a second fund. Its investment portfolio includes Chilean companies such as Xepelin, Camel Secure, Opencasa, Rocketbot, and Ipsum.

On the other coast of the U.S., in San Francisco, there is also a Chilean venture capital fund that is raising its first vehicle. It is Patio Ventures, whose partners are Ian Cox and the Patio Group, who aim to raise some US$40 million and do not rule out opening an office in Miami.

With information from Diaro Financiero