Lender Credijusto Raises $42M Series B In Goldman Sachs PSI, Point72’s ‘First Foray Into Mexico’

Mexico City-based fintech startup Credijusto has raised $42 million in a Series B that was co-led by Goldman Sachs PSI and Point72 Ventures.

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The round is notable in that it marks both Goldman Sachs PSI (the investment firm’s tech-focused “Principal Strategic Investments” group) and Point72’s “first foray into the Mexican market,” according to a written statement by Credijusto.

Founded in 2015, the company provides asset-backed loans and equipment leases to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Credijusto has 200 employees. Since its inception, the startup said it has launched several financial products “and originated over $90 million in term loans and leases.”

With this round, Credijusto has raised a total of $153 million in venture and debt equity. Credijusto brought in $11 million in a May 2018 Series A that was led by Kaszek Ventures (which we reported yesterday just raised two funds totaling $600 million). It also closed on a credit facility of up to $100 million from Goldman Sachs in March.

Thomvest Ventures, Wolfson Group, Third Lake Capital and Argo Ventures, as well as existing investors Kaszek Ventures, QED Investors, Broadhaven Capital Partners, John J. Mackand and Supernode Ventures also participated in the latest round.

For Credijusto, its offering is in demand in Mexico in particular because it said (citing “official data”) that SMEs make up 99 percent of businesses and account for 74 percent of total employment in the country.

Despite being so dominant, “these companies receive only 15% of total outstanding credit, as banks reject over 80% of all loan applications from SMEs,” the company said.

Pete Casella, a partner at Point72 Ventures, said Credijusto’s “tech-enabled approach to meeting the financial needs of Mexico’s underserved SME segment has huge potential.”

“This is a very large market opportunity in which, after four years of rapid growth, the company has significant competitive advantages,” he added.

Kaszek Managing Partner Hernan Kazah, who sits on Credijusto’s board, told me via email this morning that his firm participated “with more than” its pro rata in this new round after leading the company’s Series A.

“There is a gigantic underserved market for offering financing to high-quality Mexican SMEs and Credijusto has been doing a great job there, helping these companies grow while building a very solid and top-performing portfolio of loans,” he wrote. “Their approach to securitization and the tech systems and processes they have built are a nice platform to continue to push Credijusto’s expansion into more clients and more products.”

The funding is also further evidence that Latin America “has arrived” among global investors, as we reported earlier this year.

Illustration: Li-Anne Dias