Kaszek Research
Investment Thesis
Kaszek is the largest venture capital firm based in Latin America, founded in 2011 by Hernan Kazah and Nicolas Szekasy, both former executives at MercadoLibre (where Kazah was Co-founder/COO and Szekasy was CFO, having led MercadoLibre's $333M IPO). The firm was established to fill a critical gap: exceptional founders were building high-potential technology companies across Latin America, but institutional venture capital was nearly absent in the region.
Kaszek's mission is to help create a vibrant technology ecosystem in Latin America by being the most trusted and value-add partner to entrepreneurs across industries and economic cycles. Rather than restricting its focus to specific sectors, Kaszek invests in any industry where technology and innovation offer a chance of significant disruption. The firm's edge lies in its founders' deep operator experience at scale — having built and grown MercadoLibre through multiple economic crises in Latin America, they bring firsthand understanding of the unique challenges founders face in the region.
The firm's investment philosophy is grounded in three core lessons from their MercadoLibre experience: avoid shortcuts, think long-term, and minimize dependence on external capital. These principles guide both how they invest and how they advise portfolio founders.
Stage Focus
Kaszek operates two parallel strategies through its fund structure:
Early-Stage Funds (Kaszek Ventures I–VI): Target seed, Series A, and Series B investments. Fund VI ($540M, closed 2023) plans to invest in 20–30 companies with checks ranging from $500,000 to $25 million.
Opportunity Funds (KVO I–III): Target later-stage companies from Series C through pre-IPO. Kaszek Ventures Opportunity-III ($435M, closed 2023) focuses on 10–15 investments with checks from $10 million to $50 million, covering both primary rounds and selective secondary opportunities.
This dual-fund structure allows Kaszek to support portfolio companies across their entire lifecycle — from initial seed through public market preparation.
Check Size
- Early-stage: $500K – $25M (seed through Series B)
- Opportunity: $10M – $50M (Series C through pre-IPO)
- Total fund size: ~$2B+ across 9 funds since 2011
- Latest fundraise: $975M across two vehicles (2023)
Lead Tendency
Kaszek consistently leads rounds, particularly at the early stage. Recent examples include leading Tapi's $27M Series B (February 2026), leading Arvo's $20M Series A (September 2025), and co-leading Pomelo's $55M Series C with Insight Partners (January 2026). They take meaningful ownership positions and seek board representation.
Recent Activity
Kaszek closed its largest-ever dual fundraise in April 2023 — $540M (Fund VI) plus $435M (Opportunity Fund III) — totaling $975M. As of May 2026, the firm is actively deploying from these vehicles.
Recent investments include:
- Tapi — $27M Series B, led by Kaszek (February 2026): Argentine fintech expanding payment infrastructure in Mexico
- Pomelo — $55M Series C, co-led with Insight Partners (January 2026): LatAm payments infrastructure, 150+ customers
- Arvo — $20M Series A, led by Kaszek (September 2025): Brazilian health AI platform preventing fraud/waste in medical billing
- Woba — $13.5M round (July 2025): Brazilian flexible office network
- Justos — Participated in $16.5M round (June 2025): Brazilian auto insurtech
Portfolio Highlights
Kaszek has backed 130+ companies and produced 13 unicorns with 41 exits to date. Their most celebrated outcomes:
IPOs:
- Nubank — Invested at pre-seed; went public on NYSE December 2021 at ~$41B valuation. World's largest digital bank.
- GetNinjas — Listed on B3 (Brazil)
Notable Acquisitions:
- PedidosYa — Acquired by Delivery Hero
- Love Mondays — Acquired by Glassdoor
- VivaReal — Acquired by Grupo ZAP
- Gringo — Acquired by Corpay (February 2025)
- Technisys — Acquired by Temenos
Active Unicorns:
- Kavak — LatAm used car marketplace
- QuintoAndar — Brazilian proptech platform
- Creditas — Brazilian fintech lending
- NuvemShop — LatAm ecommerce platform
- Bitso — Mexican crypto exchange
- Gympass (now Wellhub) — Corporate wellness
- Loggi — Brazilian logistics
- NotCo — Food tech (AI-driven plant-based food)
- MadeiraMadeira — Brazilian home goods ecommerce
Team
Hernan Kazah, Co-Founder & Managing Partner: Stanford MBA; co-founded MercadoLibre where he served as COO until 2011. Formerly at Procter & Gamble and United Nations Development Program.
Nicolas Szekasy, Co-Founder & Managing Partner: Stanford MBA; CFO at MercadoLibre for 9 years, leading its $333M NYSE IPO. Previously CFO at Supermercados Norte and strategic planning roles at PepsiCo.
Nicolas Berman, Partner: Former VP of Marketing at MercadoLibre.
Santiago Fossatti, Partner: Investment professional with deep LatAm market expertise.
Angel Uribe, Partner: Focus on Mexico and Spanish-speaking LatAm markets.
Andy Young, Partner: Brings international perspective to the LatAm-focused portfolio.
Marcelo Diaz, COO: Manages firm operations across four offices.
The firm also includes three Principals (Mariano Bomaggio, Thaisa Miyazaki, Julia Salles) and additional investment, legal, and finance professionals across Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Montevideo, and São Paulo.
Decision Process
Kaszek operates as a partnership, with investment decisions made collectively by the partner team. The firm's seven experienced partners — most with founder and operator backgrounds — evaluate opportunities together. They take an active, hands-on approach post-investment, providing not just capital but strategic, operational, and even emotional support. They typically seek board seats at early-stage portfolio companies.
Founder Preferences
Kaszek explicitly prioritizes the quality of the founding team above sector or business model. They seek:
- Visionary leaders with the capacity to inspire and execute
- Honest and determined founders with purpose-driven missions
- Strong product orientation and ability to build teams
- Willingness to embrace uncertainty and execute through adversity
- Founders who think long-term and resist short-term shortcuts
They are particularly attracted to founders who have deep market expertise in Latin America and understand the region's unique regulatory, cultural, and economic dynamics.
Geographic Focus
All of Latin America, with concentrated coverage in:
- Brazil (São Paulo office — largest market by deal count)
- Argentina (Buenos Aires HQ)
- Mexico (Mexico City office)
- Uruguay (Montevideo office)
Also active in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Occasional US investments for Latin American diaspora founders or companies with strong LatAm ties.