Brazil-based SmartMEI has secured an undisclosed funding round from Accion Venture Lab and Canary Ventures.
SmartMEI is a mobile platform that offers banking and automated accounting for micro-entrepreneurs. Currently the solution caters for Brazilian business owners, providing them with a bank account, basic tax filing, payment solutions, invoice payments, cash advances, and a mobile POS system, among others.
The company initially launched its app at the start of 2016, and has since added several features, with the platform now offering the main services of traditional banks.
This capital injection will allow the company to continue development of its mobile banking features and to expand marketing efforts. Equity will also be used to invest in the user experience to increase both adoption and engagement.
Accion CEO and president Michael Schlein said, “In Brazil, millions of micro-entrepreneurs lack access to the financial services they need to grow and sustain their businesses. SmartMEI’s innovative business model and all-digital platform enable the company to profitably provide critical financial services to underserved businesses whose needs are not being met by current service offerings.â€
The Latin America FinTech market has been dominated by Brazil, with it accounting for more than 90 per cent of the total investments within the region, last year. The country has also seen a range of investments within recent months. Personal finance platform GuiaBolso raised a $40m funding round last month, of which $30m was supplied by Vostok Emerging Finance.
Copyright © 2017 FinTech Global
