Weekly Latin America SaaS News and Startup Funding Highlights
Latin America's SaaS ecosystem continues to thrive in late January 2026, with significant funding rounds highlighting AI-driven solutions and fintech infrastructure. Key deals from the past week include Jelou's $10M Series A and Leracom AI's $1M pre-seed, amid broader regional momentum.
Major Funding Rounds
Jelou, an Ecuadorian SaaS startup, secured $10 million in a Series A round led by Wellington Access Ventures, with participation from Krealo and Collide Capital. The platform builds conversational AI infrastructure for WhatsApp, enabling agents to handle payments, workflows, and customer interactions with over 3,000 integrations across 13 countries. Serving 500+ enterprise clients in banking and retail, Jelou will use the funds to expand across the Americas and enhance banking integrations.
Leracom AI, a Mexico-based conversational AI platform for contact centers, raised $1 million in a pre-seed round led by WeBoost, alongside 99 Startups, Ganas Ventures, and others. It trains AI agents on real conversations to automate queries and reduce churn in the $200 billion industry, planning expansion to Colombia and Chile.
Earlier in the month but still resonant, Fracttal from Chile announced a $35 million growth round from Riverwood Capital and Seaya Ventures to scale its AI-powered asset maintenance SaaS, managing 20 million assets for 1,500 global clients. The funding targets AI/IoT enhancements and markets like Mexico, Brazil, and Europe.
Fintech-SaaS Crossovers
While not pure SaaS, Pomelo's $55 million Series C underscores infrastructure synergies, offering API-based card issuance and payments serving 150 clients, with plans for stablecoin credit cards. This fintech-SaaS blend is pivotal as LatAm firms integrate payments into software stacks.
Brazil's UY3 raised $37.2 million for credit infrastructure, processing $2.79 billion in 2025 transactions to connect fintechs to capital markets. Emergent's $70 million Series B fuels rapid ARR growth in financial tools, reflecting investor focus on scalable platforms.
Emerging Trends
AI dominates, with Leracom and Jelou exemplifying contact-center automation via conversation-trained agents. Maintenance and asset management SaaS like Fracttal leverages AI for predictive ops, signaling vertical specialization.
SME demand drives growth, with 75% planning cloud increases; Brazil leads at ~50% market share, Mexico at 20%. The regional SaaS market, valued at $8.3 billion in 2024, eyes $31.9-$46 billion by 2027, fastest globally at 23% CAGR.
Payments innovation boosts adoption: Pix drives 61% of Brazilian SaaS revenue, enabling recurring models. Global players like monday.com grew 41% TPV via local methods.
Country Spotlights
Brazil: Commands half the market, fueled by Pix and SME digitalization; UY3 exemplifies credit-SaaS infrastructure. Projections hit $22 billion by 2027.
Mexico: 20% share, strong in manufacturing and e-commerce SaaS; Leracom targets contact centers amid high digitalization.
Chile/Argentina/Ecuador: Fracttal leads maintenance SaaS; Pomelo and Jelou push AI/fintech, tapping inflation hedges like stablecoins.
Broader Ecosystem News
Dealism expands "vibe selling" SaaS to Mexico via WhatsApp, eyeing 20% user base. Revolut eyes Peruvian banking license, pressuring SaaS payment integrations.
Market tailwinds include SME cloud shifts and Pix Automático for recurrings. Early-stage activity rises, with Bolivia's Favorcito ($150K pre-seed) in recruiting SaaS.
Investment Insights
Kaszek, Insight, and regional VCs like Riverwood prioritize scalable AI/SaaS amid $160M+ Pomelo total. Total weekly LatAm funding highlights $100M+ in infra, signaling recovery.
LatAm's 5% global SaaS funding share grows via local VCs and cross-border flows. Focus on verticals: AI, maintenance, conversational commerce.