Connect33 Newsletter, Q1 2023

April 12, 2023

Hi readers — we’re back with our 2023 Q1 coverage of Latin America tech market trends, international expansions, and our US-based LatAm jobs section. A very special welcome to our new subscribers from Spotify, EPAM, MongoDB, and more. 

This year we’re looking to hear from you on what Latin America expansion insights you’re interested in so don’t be shy and hit the Reply button up above. ¡Vámonos!

• Nearshoring On Overdrive: According to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), medium-term nearshoring opportunities for LATAM will reach US$78 billion in new exports of products and services by 2023. Of this figure, Mexico would be taking US$35 billion, making it one of the biggest beneficiaries in the region. 

  • Our take: Tense US-China relations and the pandemic supply chain disruption, among other factors, have resulted in a surge in nearshoring primarily across logistics, transportation, and manufacturing with Mexico’s Economy Minister recently stating that more than 400 North American companies intend to relocate from Asia to Mexico.

    This influx of companies is leading to a talent search for highly specialized labor such as technology, where experts say supply is scarce. In a recent report, Adecco highlighted the following core specializations as the most in demand for the nearshoring boom: (1) software development, (2) industrial skills in manufacturing, (3) bilingualism, and (4) project management. As we stated in our previous writeup – it will be crucial for foreign companies to understand their talent pool and allocate part of their investment to training programs in order for these companies to scale their local teams.

• Deel’s State of Global Hiring: Deel’s 2023 annual report revealed that LatAm continues to be one of the most sought out regions to hire from with Argentina ranking third in the world for recruiting remote talent. The top countries recruiting remote talent in Argentina include Uruguay, Mexico, and the United States.

  • Our take: Given the country was one of the earliest adopters of nearshoring and is home to the second largest tech talent pool in LatAm this comes as no surprise. Argentina continues to be a popular market for international companies to hire in given the country’s high English proficiency and software readiness scores as well as the time zone alignment with the US.

    One interesting trend to keep an eye on is the the country’s drastic increase in hiring by its neighboring country of Uruguay. As the economic and political crises continue in Argentina – Uruguay is seeing a tech migration with recent visa statistics showing a 6x increase in temporary or permanent residency between 2020-2021 by Argentines. Something tells us top-performing remote contractors in Argentina may receive a relocation offer at some point in the near future.

• Foxconn announced plans to increase production capacity in Mexico to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles and servers to be made in North America. (Reuters)

• phdata, a full-service machine learning and data analytics consulting company, expanded into Latin America via an acquisition of Nooka Labs based in Uruguay. (Newswire)

• Netskope plans to increase its headcount in Latin America and expand its regional data center infrastructure following a US $401mn funding round. The company currently operates in five Latin American countries – Bogotá, Lima, Santiago, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasiília. (BN Americas)

• Nowports, the Mexican unicorn startup, expanded operations to Miami. (Refresh Miami) 

• KLYM, the Colombian fintech, raised US $27mn to boost its growth in Latin America across Colombia, Chile, and Mexico. (Bloomberg Linea)

• Mastercard [NYSE: MA] & Binance launched a prepaid card in Brazil as part of the crypto giant’s efforts to “broaden the connection between traditional finance and crypto”. (Reuters)

• Dyninno Group, a global technology group of companies that provides products and services in the travel, fintech, and entertainment technologies sectors, expanded into São Paulo, Brazil, creating over 100 jobs.  (PR Newswire)

• RobotLAB, the world’s largest robotics integrator company, announced its new expansion to Bogota, Colombia. (Investor Observer)

• Ascenty, the Brazilian data center company, began building four new data centers to capitalize on the growing demand for cloud services. These centers will be based in Santiago, Bogota, São Paulo, and Queretaro. (Nearshore Americas)

• Planet42, a South Africa-based rent-to-buy car firm, raised US $100mn in debt and equity financing and expanded into Mexico. (Bloomberg Linea)

• MercadoPago, the fintech division of MercadoLibre [NASDAQ: MELI] launched a new credit card in partnership with Visa. (Business Insider)

• SesameHR, a Spanish human resources management software company, announced the start of its international expansion into Mexico. (Mexico Business)

• Tesla [NYSE: TSLA], announced plans to build a US $5bn plant in Monterrey, Mexico. The company has begun ramping up hiring for its new factory. (FT)

• Thunes, a Singapore-based global cross-border payments company, announced its expansion into Latin America with the hiring of a new Head of LatAm based in São Paulo. (PR Newswire)

• Equisoft, a Montreal-based insurance and investment software developer, raised US $125mn to fuel international expansion. The company’s LatAm team is spread across Mexico, Colombia, Panama, and Brazil. (TechCrunch)

• Clara, the Mexican fintech, announced a US $90mn debt funding round to expand further into Brazil & Colombia where it has seen strong growth. (Reuters)

• CourtAvenue, a US-based global digital transformation agency, launched its new Latin America office in Mexico City. (PR Newswire)

• Seak Sistemas, a Brazil-based firm specializing in IoT and mobility projects, is readying an expansion into Mexico likely targeting edge data centers and cloud. (BN Americas)

• MercadoLibre [NASDAQ: MELI], Latin America’s leading e-commerce company, to invest US$1.6B in Mexico this year. (Mexico News)

• Cabify, Spain’s ride-sharing app company, raised US $110mn in funding. Funds will be used to grow in existing Latin American markets; Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay. (Bloomberg Linea)

• EpicQuest Education [NASDAQ: EEIQ], a provider of comprehensive education solutions for domestic and international students interested in college and university programs announced expansion into Mexico. (PR Newswire)

• MiX Telematics [NYSE: MIXT], a leading provider of connected fleet management SaaS solutions, announced 3,000 new subscribers across Latin America. (PR Newswire)

Additional stories we’re following:

• 10 Most Innovative Companies in Latin America 2023 (Fast Company)

• Major Risks Facing LatAm Countries in 2023 (Bloomberg Linea)

• Globant Reports Best Year So Far in 2022 (Bloomberg Linea)

• Shein Names Ex-SoftBank Exec to Head LatAm Business (WSJ)

• DHL to boost Mexican investment after cargo flights move (Reuters)

• Stellantis [NYSE: STLA] invests US$150 mn in Argentine copper mine (Reuters)

• Mastercard, Visa in talks to buy Brazilian Fintech Pismo (Bloomberg)

• Mexican Casai and Brazilian Nomah, two of the largest startups in short-stay rentals, shut down operations in Brazil. (Bloomberg Linea)

LatAm-focused roles at tech companies:

• Snowflake is hiring a Sales Development Representative in San Mateo

• Gitlab is hiring a Enterprise Area Sales Manager LATAM

• Sailpoint is hiring a Regional Marketing Manager (LATAM/US SOUTH)

• Preply is hiring a Head of Sales LatAm

• Apexanalytix is hiring a Regional Sales Executive (Latin America/Mexico)

• Wise is hiring a FinCrime Product Compliance Manager LATAM in Austin

• Levee is hiring a Global B2C Growth Lead

Thanks for reading Connect33 Quarterly!