Sao Paulo, Brazil, August, 2020 SP Ventures, one of the most active global agtech venture investors & a sector leader in Latin America, has just announced the first closing of its latest early stage fund. The new investment vehicle, AgVentures II, targets a minimum of USD 50MM & a cap of USD 75MM to invest in 20-25 tech firms with the potential to reinvent the region’s agribusiness value chain. This initial closing, which was executed during the COVID Crisis, demonstrates strong investor confidence in the region’s agriculture economy & the resiliency of tech adoption trends. The fund will focus on Seed & Series A stage deals.

SP Ventures has brought together some of the leading strategic corporate, financial & impact investors in the world. Both Syngenta Ventures & BASF Venture Capital, the globally active CVCs (corporate venture capital arms) of two leading agriculture technology corporations, have joined the fund. Capria Ventures, a global investment firm focused on emerging market fund managers that deliver superior returns and scaled impact, has also joined as an anchor investor. Among Capria’s earliest investors are Bill Gates & the Ford Foundation. Finally, among the anchors, is the Interamerican Development Bank’s IDB Labs, historically one of the most active investors in the Latin American Venture Capital industry.

Among the opportunities the fund will be targeting, some of the most noteworthy segments are:

1. 1. Agfintech companies, which aim to create a new, tech driven, fairer financial services industry for farmers;
   2. E-commerce & marketplaces, which attempt to disintermediate the agribusiness value chain, bringing price transparency & empowerment to farmers
   3. Digital and life sciences technologies that increase productivity throughout the agribusiness value chain

Besides the Brazilian market, the fund will also seek investment opportunities in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Colombia & Mexico. One of SP Ventures’ founders & Managing Director, Francisco Jardim, says

“We look for disruptive, transformative companies that can add value the AgFood segment. We want to partner with entrepreneurs in order build great businesses that will leave an enduring and positive legacy, while creating tremendous amounts of shareholder wealth along the way. Investing in agtech is a unique opportunity to intersect purpose with financial returns. We concluded our fundraising during the COVID Pandemic, demonstrating strong investor confidence in LATAM’s agriculture & tech economies”.

The first of investment of AgVentures II if Agrofy, an argentine horizontal agribusiness marketplace platform. Agrofy is an early winner in the LATAM agribusiness e-commerce market.

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About Capria

Capria Ventures is a global investment firm leading, partnering with and funding the largest network of emerging market fund managers collaborating to deliver superior returns and scaled impact. Capria brings venture capital innovation and global best practices to local venture capital, private equity and innovative debt funds, managed by local investment experts. Capria’s network of investing partners collectively manage more than USD $400 million in assets deployed in early stage and early growth companies in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Capria has over $100M in AUM which it invests directly in India via Unitus Ventures, and in other markets via partners of the Capria Fund which takes anchor GP and LP positions. Capria has offices in Seattle, Paris, Bangalore and Nairobi.  More about Capria Ventures >

About SP Ventures

SP Ventures is a leading agtech venture investor consistently ranked among the top 10 among global peers and #1 within LATAM. The firm has backed over thirty of the region’s most exciting young tech companies & consistently partnered with mission aligned entrepreneurs. SP Ventures has over R$300MM in assets under management & 10 years of venture experience. The partners believe the combination of entrepreneurship with technology are the solution to humanity’s most pressing challenges, such as food safety & global warming. More about SP Ventures >

About IDB Lab

IDB Lab is the innovation laboratory of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, the leading source of development finance and know-how for improving lives in Latin America and the Caribbean. The purpose of IDB Lab is to drive innovation for inclusion in the region, by mobilizing financing, knowledge, and connections to co-create solutions capable of transforming the lives of vulnerable populations affected by economic, social or environmental factors. Since 1993, IDB Lab has approved more than US$2 billion in projects deployed across 26 LAC countries. More about IDB Lab >

About Syngenta Ventures

Syngenta Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Syngenta Group, one of the world’s leading agriculture innovation companies, with roots going back more than 250 years. Its 48,000 people across more than 100 countries strive to transform agriculture through breakthrough products and technologies that play a vital role in enabling the food chain to feed the world safely, sustainably and with respect for our planet. Launched in 2009, Syngenta Ventures was one of the first corporate venture capital teams dedicated to agriculture. With an experienced team of investment professionals and a large, diverse portfolio of investments, Syngenta Ventures has established itself as one of the most active and knowledgeable investors in the space today. Syngenta Ventures makes investments across North America, Europe, Latin America, Israel, India and China with a common theme of helping growers to be more profitable while positively impacting the future of agriculture. More about Syngenta Ventures >