Kanastra previously secured $13 million in a seed round led by Valor Capital, Quona Capital, and QED Investors.
Over the past year, Kanastra has expanded tenfold, targeting Brazil’s 1 trillion reais ($189 billion) asset-backed funds market, according to CEO Gustavo Mapeli. Mapeli and Manuel Netto founded Kanastra after experiencing frustration with existing services while running their own asset manager.
Asset-backed securities, especially debt funds known as FIDCs, are booming in Brazil. Kanastra has structured 130 vehicles worth about 7 billion reais for clients such as Itau, XP, Banco Votorantim, and Patria. Founded in 2022, Kanastra offers a tech platform with regulatory licenses, automating operations and providing data analytics. With nearly 100 employees, it also provides banking services like escrow accounts and payments.
Kanastra’s revenue model charges basis points on assets under management monthly. Co-founder Mapeli, 29, studied at Oxford University and worked at BNP Paribas and SoftBank before starting Kanastra.
The recent $21 million investment round was led by Kaszek, the largest Latin American-based venture capital firm.
