Fintech Funding Falls; US Hits Debt Ceiling: The Week in Finance

Reports show that fintech funding fell in 2022 compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, the US government reached its legal debt ceiling on Thursday. In other news, Mapfre launched its new brand MAWDY, taking a more digital approach in Latin America and the EU. 

Interested in more? This is the Week in Finance! 

Fintech Funding Drops in 2022

Fintech funding dropped in 2022 compared to the previous year but was higher than in 2020, according to a report by CB Insights. Investment was higher in the US, the EU, Asia and Latin America, but in the last region, funding dropped by 71%, which was the most significant percentage drop in fintech funding for any region year on year (YoY). Unicorn births also showed a sharp drop on an annual basis. “Between 2021 and 2022, the new unicorn count fell by 58% from 166 to 69,” according to the report. 

Mapfre Launches New Digital Brand for its Assistance Division

Insurance and financial giant Mapfre’s assistance division will begin a new era in 2023 with the launch of its new brand MAWDY, taking a more digital focus in Latin America and the EU. Over the past few years, Mapfre underwent a profound reorganization of its assistance unit’s geographic footprint, product, channels and value proposition, which resulted in the launch of MAWDY. The new brand will focus on distribution agreements through B2B and B2B2C channels based on digitization, the core of the unit’s transformation. 

B2B SaaS Sales Is Difficult In Latam but the Prize Is Worth It

An excellent B2B SaaS solution with poor distribution will fail regardless of the market where it operates, explains Nima Pourshasb, CEO, Minu: “B2B sales is hard. Sales rock stars are constantly poached. Sales tech stacks are regularly upgraded as new innovative tools quickly become best-in-breed. Even top-performing teams are not fully satisfied with their hiring and training processes. Sales enablement efforts to optimize tools and methodologies never end.” Latin American markets, except Chile, are at an earlier evolutionary stage than the US, where buyers regularly review the latest B2B software options in the market and decide whether to continue with or replace their tools. People commonly take a “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality. 

US Reaches its Legal Debt Limit. What Does This Mean for Mexico?

The US government reached its legal debt ceiling on Thursday, prompting the Treasury Department to deploy extraordinary measures and fiscal accounting tools to curb government investments, so the bills continue to be paid. However, these measures could be exhausted by June, bringing along an economic meltdown. In a letter to Congress, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that the government would begin using extraordinary measures to prevent the nation from breaching its statutory debt limit and asked lawmakers to raise or suspend the cap so the government could continue meeting its financial obligations. The measures taken by the US government could have a spillover effect in Mexico or even influence policy in the Latin American country.