:quality(75)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/bloomberglinea/J7FDDALGMRBIBMUXSK5JVS2CLI.jpg "Rounds of the Week: Health, Education, and Software Startups Raise Up Rounds")
Bloomberg Línea — Brazilian startups operating in the healthcare, education, and software sectors were among the companies that received investments this week: Digibee, Sami, and Academy Abroad.
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Software company Digibee raised a Series B round of just over $60 million in an “up round,” at a higher valuation than the previous one, led by US bank Goldman Sachs.
Sami, a startup that offers health plans for micro and small businesses, received a $18 million investment, led by Redpoint Ventures and Mundi Ventures, also in an up round. This is relevant because, according to a new study by McKinsey, there was a 30% reduction in the value of venture capital portfolios for Latin American companies last year, and 33% of startups experienced a down round, (a round at a lower valuation than the previous one.
According to data from Carta, a US-based wealth management platform used by investors and entrepreneurs, from April to May 31, 2023, valuations for seed rounds for US startups remained stable, as flat rounds, with smaller investments.
For Series A rounds, valuations also remained stable, with a steady round size. However, for Series B rounds, both valuations and checks were higher compared to the last quarter. In contrast, valuations for Series C rounds continue to decline from already low levels in the first quarter.
These are the Latin American startups that raised funds this week:
Digibee
Brazilian startup Digibee announced on Tuesday that it received an investment of just over $60 million from US bank Goldman Sachs in a Series B round. The investment was oversubsc
ribed, meaning there was more demand than the round could accommodate. Most of the money was allocated to the company’s treasury in a primary offering, but there was also liquidity for early-stage investors in a secondary offering.
The investment also involved the participation of K Fund, a European asset manager making its first investment in Latin America, Vivo Ventures, the investment division of Vivo, and Brazilian private equity firms Kinea (part of Itaú) and G2D Investments, which were already investors, participated in the round to avoid dilution.
Sami
Sami, a startup that offers health plans for micro and small businesses, announced on Thursday that it raised a round worth $18 million, led by Redpoint eventures and Mundi Ventures.
“We ended up raising more capital than we initially expected,” said Dr. Vitor Asseituno, co-founder of the startup, in an interview with Bloomberg Línea.
The round aims to create the conditions for Sami to approach financial breakeven, “probably next year.”
Redpoint eventures had already participated in Sami’s seed investment, while Mundi Ventures is a new investor for the startup, a Spanish fund focused on insurance sector startups. The round will provide working capital to support Sami’s growth, as well as investments in technology and improvements in the customer experience.
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Academy Abroad
Brazilian startup Academy Abroad aims to assist professionals in advancing their careers and internationalizing themselves.
The company received an investment of 400,000 reais (around $74,700), which raised its valuation to 10 million reais ($1.87 million).
In 2021, its first year of operation, the company generated 167,000 reais ($31,200) in revenue, and increased it to 358,000 reais ($66,900) in 2022. For this year, the startup estimates generating between 2 million and 3 million reais ($561,000) through the restructuring of the platform, technology development, and the launch of a new product.
The company has also benefited from investments from Dr. Roger Daglius, a Harvard professor and researcher, and serial investor Ramon Maia, the current CEO of UAUBox, who has executive experience in companies like C&A, Conexa, and Grupo Pão de Açúcar.
The platform was relaunched in May 2023 with 45 mentors, including distinguished professors from Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and NYU. The startup expects to reach 150 registered mentors by the end of the year and offer at least 50 courses in professional careers, exchange programs, languages, and public speaking, impacting approximately 15,000 students and mentors during 2023.
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