Mubadala invests in $440m LatAm fund

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Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala is an anchor investor in a new $440 million fund run by former SoftBank executives that will buy into Latin American startups.

Miami’s Bicycle Capital has launched the fund, its first, according to a press statement that says it could increase to $500 million.

The Bicycle 1 fund will partner with the “best founders” in Latin America, “helping them scale their startups into resilient and valuable companies”, the statement said.  

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“Bicycle Capital represents a significant bet on Latin America, in particular Brazil and Mexico.

“These two countries have large, young populations with meaningful purchasing power, and are experiencing attractive geopolitical and macroeconomic tailwinds.”

Marcelo Claure is founder and chief executive of Claure Group, which, along with Mubadala, have made “anchor commitments” to Bicycle 1.

Claure is executive chairman of Bicycle Capital, while Mwashuma Nyatta is managing partner. The duo were formerly at Japan’s SoftBank Group International, serving as chief executive and managing partner, respectively.

According to Mubadala’s website, 2 percent of its $276 billion of assets under management – or around $5.5 billion – are in Latin America.

“The startup ecosystem in Latin America is rapidly evolving, and we believe that there is significant potential to create value,” Faris Sohail al Mazrui, Mubadala’s head of ventures and growth, said in the statement.

“Mubadala has been investing in Brazil for more than a decade, and we look forward to broadening our exposure across the region through this partnership.”