Brazilian credit fintech Open Co announced on Wednesday it raised BRL 150 million in a round led by International Finance Corporation (IFC), an institution linked to the World Bank, and followed by Goldman Sachs.
Raiz Investimentos, Monashees, LTS, Chromo and Sampa also participated in the round.
Carlos Leiria Pinto, IFC’s general manager in Brazil, explained that IFC’s strategy for the financial sector in Latin America and the Caribbean includes leveraging the financial inclusion of millions of unbanked people – just one of Open Co’s target audiences.
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“We want to leverage digital technologies that improve access to financial services in Brazil. IFC’s investment will enable better credit pricing, through a more efficient risk analysis. This will make the credit market unsecured, which today is one of the most expensive in the country, most competitive,” Leiria Pinto says.
Open Co was founded in 2021 after the merger between the fintechs Geru and Rebel and plans to use the value raised in technology and new products. The holding company says it intends to take the lead in the credit fintech market in Brazil.
With the merger, Open Co assumes a BRL 1.5 billion loan portfolio and a customer base of more than 100,000 people. The founders Sandro Reiss, from Geru, and Rafael Pereira, from Rebel, expect to generate more than BRL 1 billion in credit in 2021.
