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Impressive lineup for Peru Venture Capital Series

This year’s Peru Venture Capital Series highlights the breadth and depth of the venture capital industry in Peru.

The most important event for venture capital in Peru has teamed up with PECAP to put on the 2020 edition. The series will occur over a five day period in August and a diverse list of speakers has already been announced.

Startup founders are always the highlight of the event and this year Diego Olcese, Gonzalo Begazo, and Tatiana Guichard are already confirmed as speakers. More great founders are sure to particpate as well.

Logo of Perú Venture Capital Series (https://www.pecap.pe/pvcs2020)

The organizing commitee, led by Jaime Sotomayor, has done an impressive job of organizing a full agenda that includes keynotes, panels, and workshops on a wide variety of issues.

Check out the website to learn more and register!

6 recomendaciones para un ecosistema más diverso e inclusivo

Durante las últimas semanas, la muerte de George Floyd a manos de un policía en EE.UU ha devuelto a la actualidad el movimiento de la búsqueda por la igualdad de la población afroamericana, conocido como “Black Lives Matter” (BLM). A pesar de su origen en el activismo político, el colectivo que comenzó como un hashtag utilizado en redes sociales, hoy está consiguiendo cambios que van más allá y están permeando distintas industrias, entre ellas la de venture capital.

Ilustración de: Meg Robichaud – @megdraws

Fondos como SoftBank y Andreessen Horowitz han creado vehículos con la finalidad exclusiva de invertir en startups fundadas por afroamericanos y otras minorías. Hay firmas que han ido aún más lejos, publicando el make-up étnico de los founders en sus portafolios: por ejemplo, Initialized Capital reveló que el 7% de sus founders son afroamericanos, y un 9% son latinos. Sin embargo, estas minorías siguen subrepresentadas, ya que componen el 14% y el 20% de la población estadounidense, respectivamente, según la proyección al 2019 del US Census Bureau. Con el objetivo de resolver esta brecha, BLCK.VC, un grupo de inversionistas y emprendedores afroamericanos, lanzaron la campaña: “We won’t wait” .

Emerging tech hubs in LatAm

The startup ecosystem in Peru and other smaller markets in LatAm have come a long way over the last five years. We still have a long way to go. Maintaining support of entrepreneurs in Peru and other emerging tech hubs is vital to Latin America’s future.

Here is an article I published on the topic: Why support for Latin America’s early tech hubs is vital for the region.

Separation

UTEC Ventures has set itself apart as the top startup accelerator in Peru. The program is on par with peers across Latin America and continues to attract promising startup founders from Peru and abroad. UTEC Ventures recently opened applications for its latest cohort which is aimed to support fintech and post-covid solutions.

A long, consistent, approach is paying off and the results speak for themselves.

ASEDI brings together tech entrepenuers in Peru

In another clear example of tech entrepreneurs in Peru coming together in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, a large group of startup founders launched ASEDI, Asociación de Emprendores Digitales.

Sharing is caring (2)

Last year, I wrote about some of the best newsletters and websites that share information on the Peru and Latin America startup communities.

This year, more people are sharing. The new content goes beyond news. Fresh voices are both providing deeper insights into how to launch startups and building broad platforms for startups founders to share their stories.

Peru’s tech entrepreneurs can get us out of this crisis

Positive actions have been taken by traditional actors to mitigate the effects of Covid-19 in Peru. The government has taken strong steps to enforce a quarantine and implement fiscal stimulus. Many corporations are working overtime provide basic needs, including food, health and financial services.

However, opening up effectively poses an entirely different set of challenges. This is where startup founders come in. Peru’s startup founders have been thought leaders in analyzing the effects of the crisis and offering solutions.

The long haul

Peru enters its 75th day of government mandated quarantine today. Unfortunately, despite the quick, strong action to enforce physical distancing, Peru continues to be deeply affected by the coronavirus.

I was recently reminded of the Stockdale Paradox, which highlights the benefits of balancing optimism with reality when faced with extreme challenges. James Stockdale was a Prisoner of War in Vietnam. He said the following:

PECAP’s new leadership team

The members of PECAP have chosen new leaders to set the course for the coming year and continue to build the venture capital asset class in Peru.

Maria Pia Morante, of Acumen LatAm Capital Partners, and Meghan Stevenson-Krausz of INCA Ventures became new members of the PECAP Board and continuity was achieved as Alain Elias, of PAD – Red de Inversionistas Ángeles , Martin Aspillaga, of Salkantay, and Jose Deutsua of UTEC Ventures will continue another year. Jose Deustua takes the helm as President, after the very successful leadership of Alain Elias that culminated in the recent publication of the 2019 Report.

Fintechs unite

Crises can divide or unite. In the case of the fintech community in Peru, the Covid-19 pandemic and fallout has helped to bring together entrepreneurs in the local fintech community.

The 2020 PECAP Directory is out!

Last month the Peruvian Seed and Venture Capital Association, PECAP, published its Directorio de Miembros PECAP 2020. This is a great step to provide access to information on active early stage investors in Peru.

AWS steps up support of startups in Peru

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has increased its presence in Peru and, with that its support of local startups. Alex Harasic, who previously founded startup Operatio, is now Business Development Manager, Startups & Venture Capital, for Chile and Peru.

Peru is setting an example

The current Covid-19 outbreak has put pressure on governments to act. Peru’s goverment has taken quick, drastic action. So far, it has stood out as a model globally.

According to the International Survey on Coronavirus, with over 100,000 participants so far, Peru sits on the spectum of most extreme government reaction and most truthful government communication.

This is hard

Startup founders are used to crisis and leading through change is part of founders’ mental make-up.

What is happening now is unexpected, unprecedented, and harder.

Startup solidarity

Solidarity among Peruvians has remained strong during the first weeks of the goverment-mandated quaratine period. Citizens are staying home and doing their best to manage the challanges brought by the novel coronavirus.

This solidarity of the general population has extended to startups, many of which are in a great position to provide support. In some cases, this support comes in the form of providing resources and ideas for managing time at home. In others, startup support comes in the form of a digital channel to provide direct resources to people most in need.