The Venture Codex

Led · Series C · Oct 2024

Agrolend operates a lending platform that provides credit at the point of sale for agricultural inputs (seeds, crop protection, crop nutrition) using CPR-F contracts signed via farmers’ WhatsApp. The company leverages a distribution network of more than 150 partners—retailers, industries, and cooperatives—and operates in over 15 Brazilian states across crops including soybeans, corn, coffee, sugarcane, fruits, vegetables and livestock. Agrolend finances loans through issuance of time deposits targeted to agribusiness (LCAs) distributed on major investment platforms. The company has nearly $100M in total funding and reports a capital base of approximately $100M following the latest round. Management says the capital increase will let Agrolend expand credit offerings to industries, retailers and cooperatives without raising its leverage ratio, continuing a history of low‑risk growth. Its stated goal is to grow the credit portfolio to $600M and serve about 10,000 small and medium‑sized farmers. Agrolend is a São Paulo-based financial institution that provides credit to small and medium-sized farmers in Brazil through a digital platform. Led by CEO Andre Glezer, the company originates and formalizes loans in a digital environment via smartphone, partnering with input and equipment distributors, industries and agtechs to finance technology. It operates in more than ten Brazilian states across crops and sectors including soybeans, corn, coffee, sugar cane, fruits, livestock and dairy cattle. Agrolend is targeting expansion to serve up to 10,000 small-to-medium sized farmers and increase its loan book to R$2 billion for the 2023/24 crop season. The company expected its loan book to reach R$250 million by the end of 2022 and will increase equity to R$220 million after the Series B. The business combines digital origination with partnerships and capital markets solutions to scale agricultural credit across Brazil. Agrolend offers a 100% digital credit product for small and medium agricultural producers, with a fast, low-friction underwriting process that completes in under five days and typically does not require physical collateral. The company uses advanced technology to enable an innovative credit model focused on financing diverse agricultural productions and investments in equipment and new technologies. Agrolend emphasizes ESG and social impact by targeting underserved producers across more than 10 Brazilian states and roughly 100 municipalities. Founded in December 2020, the startup says it is currently doubling in size every month. The recent capital will support growth of the credit portfolio, expansion of the team, and improvements to the platform and credit model. Management aims to scale the loan book to R$1 billion and reach 5,000 customers within two years. Agrolend offers an online loan origination platform for small and medium-scale farmers, using advanced technology and innovative credit analysis to underwrite loans without physical collateral. The company partners with traditional agricultural inputs players and supply-chain participants to originate loans and reach growers. Loans range from 50,000 to 300,000 Brazilian reals, run for up to one year, and are repaid after harvest; some loans can be issued as soon as 24 hours after request. Agrolend says it offers lower interest rates than traditional banks and operates the entire process digitally. Founded in December 2020 and based in São Paulo, the startup raised seed capital to scale lending and build its team. It plans to structure a fund that will receive and hold originated loans, with Agrolend selling loans to that debt investment vehicle to enable much larger lending capacity.

Participated · Equity · Feb 2024

Techreo is a digital financial services platform that provides comprehensive financial services in Mexico. Led by CEO and co-founder Iliana de Silva, the company launched in 2022 and has attracted users in Mexico and Bolivia. Since launch it has completed prior capital raising of $6.0M. In June 2024 Techreo raised $3.4M in bridge funding. The company plans to use the funds to expand the platform into Bolivia and to focus growth on Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and the Hispanic population in the United States. The raise is positioned to support regional expansion and additional user acquisition.

Participated · Equity · Jan 2024

AVLA is a global insurance group headquartered in Bermuda that provides surety and trade credit solutions, primarily serving small and medium-sized enterprises. The company operates across Latin America with presence in Brazil, Mexico, Chile, and Peru and is ranked as a top-five provider of those solutions in the region. AVLA generated about $150 million of insurance revenue in 2023. Management says the business combines attractive profitability with social impact and an ability to enter new markets. AVLA plans to accelerate international growth and enter the U.S. market, and intends to reach 150,000 clients and $350 million in consolidated revenue in the coming years. Investors in the recent round also highlighted support for the company’s operations and technology as part of the growth plan.

Participated · Series B · Dec 2023

谛声科技 develops AI acoustic-detection technology for industrial applications, specializing in multi-microphone-array complex sound-field signal processing and analysis. The company provides AI intelligent acoustic fault detection, operations and maintenance and diversified solutions to industrial manufacturing, energy, power and rail-transport customers. It recently completed a B+ financing round of more than ¥100 million. The round was led by Beijing Zhongyi Digital New Economy Industry Fund, an investment vehicle under China Mobile, with participation from October Capital, Gaochuang Investment, Wild Grass Ventures and others. Proceeds are planned for product R&D, production-line expansion and market promotion. The company positions itself as an explorer of acoustic inspection AI technologies for industrial use cases. 谛声科技 (Dishing Technology) develops end-to-end acoustic sensing products that combine microphone arrays and proprietary acoustic algorithms to detect and locate faults in industrial equipment. Its offerings include non-contact terminal devices and a SaaS platform that deliver AI acoustic fault detection, fault localization, and maintenance alerts for rail, power, and broader industrial customers. The company reports large-scale data collection partnerships (including with an electrical research institute) and claims industry-leading accuracy across 50+ power-grid fault types, 37 railway fault models, and hundreds of industrial fault models. Products cited include rail running-gear abnormal-sound monitoring, power-plant fault detection systems, and acoustic-imaging terminals, all designed for noisy field environments. 谛声 emphasizes its soft‑and‑hardware approach—microphone-array hardware enabling far-field pickup and software models for de-reverberation, source separation, and classification—to address early-stage fault detection that traditional methods miss. The team says it will use new funding to continue R&D and expand market deployment in power and rail scenarios.

Led · Equity · Aug 2022

DD360 is an online financial and property-technology platform that facilitates financing and management of residential real estate in Mexico. The company offers B2B mezzanine and construction loans for developers and mortgage loans to consumers through a digital ecosystem that supports projects from inception through sale. It has financed over 120 real estate projects and built a loan portfolio of more than US$230 million. DD360 raised an equity investment to support loan growth acceleration and product roll-out by expanding its technology platform offerings and software development team. The company is led by co-founder and CEO Jorge Combe and is based in Mexico City. The article states the company has raised approximately US$91 million in equity to date.