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For some time now, you have probably noticed that you have more payment options when shopping online. That’s easy to explain: the pandemic not only boosted e-commerce, but also brought more payment options such as the famous “by now, pay later (BNPL)” model, which is booming in Latin America. Kueski has an advantage in this product, since BNPL has been the fintech’s core business for a while.
Its growth has been consistent enough that the Mexican company has just announced the raising of US$202 million in equity and debt funding.
The raise was a Series C led by StepStone Group and Victory Park Capital. Also participating were One Prime Capital, and Glisco Partners, as well as Altos Ventures, Richmond Global Ventures, Cometa, Cathay Innovation, Rise Capital, and Angel Ventures Mexico.
Kueski Continues To Focus on Mexico… For Now
Although the fintech has not ruled out expanding to other Latin American countries, its focus is on Mexico for now. They want to offer their products (Kueski Pay, the BNPL model; Kueski Cash, personal loans; and Kueski Up, their interest-free salary advances), to the unbanked population.
Kueski Pay managed a 210% growth in gross merchandise volume (GMV) from November 2020 to November 2021. Kueski Up grew by 320% in the same period.
Kueski’s strategy is clear: they don’t rely on information from credit authorities, but instead use real-time behavioral and socio-demographic data. Their AI and machine learning technology analyze this data to predict the applicant’s situation and their ability to repay.
The country has a wide area of opportunity, as just over 80% of the population still use cash and around 20% use credit cards, according to data from the country’s Central Bank.
The new funding will be used to increase Kueski’s BNPL’s presence in Mexico, and to create new products for the country’s population. So far, Kueski has granted around 5 million online loans.
Kueski, founded in 2012, also want to use the capital to hire more people. They now have 500 employees but want to reach 1,000 hires by the end of 2022.
In addition, Adalberto Flores, the company’s CEO and co-founder, told Techcrunch that they expect to have annual recurring revenues of more than US$100 million.
You may also be interested: Investment in Latin American BNPL startups is increasing
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