Musings from Mexico City #10
Welcome to the tenth edition of Musings from Mexico City. A personal newsletter on tech, community, and happenings in Mexico City & Latin America! Thank you for following along with me.
Uncertain times open new doors of opportunity & growth in the region. Founders in Latin America are resilient and are seasoned at adjusting to dynamic markets and demonstrating leadership in times of turbulence. To that end, many of the startups and founders in our community are strategizing on how to approach 2023. Please reach out if you have any asks (talent, capital, resources, mentorship, etc), and we will do our bests to respond to the communities needs via programming in 2023.
Tonight, I will be attending Endeavor’s 20th-Anniversary High Impact Gala! Endeavor has been a remarkable catalyst in Latin America, and the night will be one to remember. I hope to see many of you there (send me a message if you’re joining too!)
Since this is my last Musings for 2022, I wanted to include some warm end-of-year wishes! I hope you will be able to rest, enjoy quality time with loved ones, and reflect on this past year. I wish everyone a very Happy New Year and look forward to growing together in 2023! We will be starting off next year strong with our first Khora event in January 2023. Sign up for the Founders & Builders Mixer here! Our mixers include founders, investors, builders, students, expats, and corporates that are passionate about growing the startup community in CDMX.
📈 Trends
Mexico’s foreign direct investment reaches a record high this year (more here)
2023 will be a fantastic vintage for VC in Latin America (more here)
Latin America has laid out a playbook for how small tech ecosystems can flourish (more here)
Mexico’s foreign direct investment reaches record high this year (more here)
📈 Big News
Syncfy, the Mexico-based open finance platform, raised $10 million led by Point72 Ventures (more here)
Plenna, the women’s health platform base in CDMX closed a $4.4M seed round with participation from Canary VC, Collaborative, 1984 VC, 500 Global, and Bridge Latam (more here)
Deepak Chhungani of Nuvocargo was named 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 (more here)
Ualá, the Argentina-based neobank, announced the launch of personal loans in Mexico of up to $1,000 (more here)
Trully, a Mexico-based Identity Verification Startup, raised a $4.1M seed round led by Costanoa Ventures (more here)
🚀 Startup Opportunities
Apply for ‘Forbes 30 Promesas de los Negocios 2023’ (more here)
Founder Tip Series – Ch.3: What Metrics Should You Target for Each Company Stage by Stevon Darling of H20 Capital (more here)
IGNITE 2023: a 3-month program for biotech startups. Apply by January 27, 2023 (more here)
📅 Upcoming Events…
12/13-12/14: Fintech Nexus Latam (RSVP here)
12/14: Endeavor’s High Impact Party (RSVP here)
1/18: Founders & Builders in CDMX by Khora (RSVP here)
2/14-2/17: FINNOSUMMIT Connect 2023 in Cancun (RSVP here)
2/15-2/17: Mexico Health Summit 2023 (RSVP here)
📚 What I’m Reading…
Latin America’s financial infrastructure revolution by Travis Foxhall of Point72 (more here)
LAVCA 2022 Report of Women Investors in Latin America (more here)
Latitud’s LatAm Tech Report 2022 (more here)
Technopoly #033: The biggest fintech opportunities in LatAm by Simon Rodrigues (more here)
Signals Fintech Founders: Vergo’s Rich Kane on fintech competition & entrepreneurship (more here)
20 Startups co-founded by Latin American Women (more here)
🎙️ What I’m Listening to…
Latitud #124 - The opportunities yet to be seized, in the eyes of startup founders: The LatAm Tech Report (more here)
Levantando Podcast with Patricio Aznar of Bridge Latam (more here)
Great leadership is a network, not a hierarchy (more here)
The Art of Accomplishment Podcast (more here)
Medha Agarwal, Partner at Redpoint Ventures – Doubling Down on Fintech Investing, Modernizing the CFO Tech Stack, & The Power of Content Creation (more here)
The Journey to Become a Unicorn: Jeeves (watch here)
👩💻 VC Firms & Startups Hiring
Off-cycle Investment Analyst/Associate & Picus Capital (Apply & more details here)
Senior Associate @ Valor Capital Group (Apply & more details here)
General Counsel @ Addem Capital (Apply & more details here)
Associate @ IGNIA Partners (Apply & more details here)
Head of Merchant Success @ Pacto (Apply & more details here)
Head of Product @ Talent[ly] (Apply & more details here)
🧘🏻♀️ Wellness
Science Confirms that the Vagus Nerve is Key to Well-Being (more here)
Close 2022 and Plan 2023 through Year Compass Excercise (more here)
8 Minute Meditation You Can Do Anywhere by Yoga with Adriene (more here)
🌟 Khora Community Perks
Fitpass: use code REF 155259 for 100 pesos off your first month
Glitzi: use code KHORA20 for 20% off on all at-home manis, pedis & haircuts and more
Adventurely: use code KHORA for a 10% discount to the 1 Month welcome meetups for remote workers traveling to Mexico
Dolar App: use code: KHORA_CARD for a free DolarCard ($4.99 USD value)
Dolar App: Use code KHORA_TRANSFERS for 1 free transfer per month from/to any US account (ACH or Wire)
Around: If you’re looking for new office space in CDMX, message me for a special promo for our community
Pomelo for Startups (more here)
Scape: use code KHORA25 for 25% off for at-home massages, facials, and beauty products
Trendi: use code KHORA for 20% off of digital education programs
🐶 Dogs of the Month: Simon
This month was one of the most competitive months for Dog of the Month. We had so many phenomenal submissions (check them out here). Without further ado, I am happy to announce the Dog of the Month: Simon! He is the talented pup of Paola Cuevas Loubet.
💜 Gratitude
Thank you to the many friends, peers, and mentors that have supported me in my Latam journey. A special shout-out to Enrique Perrett, Miguel Bárcena Garza, Damian Laray, Oliver Rieche, and Sergio Hermosillo.
Abrazos,
Kate Kiewel