Based on Statista, fintech in Latin America (LatAm) suffered in 2023, with lower than $2billion invested in fintech ventures – a drastic drop from 2021’s worth of $6billion. Nonetheless, within the face of this hardship, fintechs have nonetheless continued to emerge and discover success within the area, and throughout 2024, funding ranges surged again up over $2billion once more. With the way forward for fintech wanting optimistic in 2025, Em Conversa seems to be to discover how the LatAm area can prosper as soon as extra.
In March, fintech FitBank launched a brand new platform to permit corporations of all sizes to regulate their funds straight from their administration programs. The launch aligned with FitBank’s goal of redefining the mixing of economic companies in ERP programs, and provided that the Brazilian ERP market is the fifth largest globally, there may be big potential for the brand new providing.
To get a greater understanding of the service, we spoke to Alex Vollbrechthausen, investor and chairman of the board at FitBank. He spent 18 years at Goldman Sachs, the place he was one of many companions main the agency’s enterprise growth efforts throughout Latin America and rising markets. From 2011 to 2016, he additionally served as CEO of Goldman Sachs Brazil.
Are you able to inform me extra in regards to the firm and your position inside it?
FitBank, a conglomerate with know-how and controlled entities in Brazil, Mexico and Central America, was based in 2015 with a imaginative and prescient to remodel the digital funds area, recognising the rising demand for effectivity by cutting-edge know-how.
Right this moment, FitBank stands as one of many main fee establishments in Brazil, working underneath a B2B2x mannequin. We offer monetary infrastructure companies (infratech) and at the moment course of over R$20billion (approx. $4billion) per 30 days. Our companies help greater than 200 enterprise teams and affect almost 100 million people throughout 22 sectors of the economic system. We’re additionally working in earlier phases into different Latin American international locations reminiscent of Mexico, Guatemala and others.
In my position, I lead enterprise growth efforts throughout Latin America and rising markets. With a powerful background in monetary companies, I’ve at all times had a deep understanding of the trade. As I started to examine its future, it turned more and more clear that know-how could be the driving drive behind main transformations. I noticed FitBank as the perfect platform — combining cutting-edge monetary know-how with the flexibleness to serve the wants of any nation.
What are some embedded finance traits we’re seeing in Brazil, and the way do they differ from Mexico and Guatemala?
Embedded finance is quickly increasing in Brazil. The nation’s monetary know-how ecosystem is extremely superior and fiercely aggressive, which gives a definite benefit for corporations working right here. Right this moment, a whole bunch of companies throughout industries like retail, logistics, agribusiness, development, healthcare, transportation, and schooling supply monetary companies — reminiscent of digital accounts, credit score, insurance coverage, and invoice funds — straight inside their very own platforms and apps.
Mexico and Guatemala are additionally embracing this world pattern of integrating monetary companies into non-financial platforms. Nevertheless, every nation presents distinctive traits, particularly in terms of regulatory maturity, technological infrastructure, and monetary inclusion.
In Brazil, regulatory our bodies such because the Central Financial institution and the Securities and Trade Fee (CVM) have been actively monitoring and inspiring regulatory compliance, which offers a aggressive edge for corporations like FitBank which can be constructed on strong foundations.
After Brazil, Mexico is probably the most mature market in Latin America. FitBank is making ready to launch operations within the nation, which has a proactive central financial institution, a rising BaaS ecosystem, an open banking framework underneath implementation, and a powerful demand for companies like purchase now, pay later (BNPL) and worldwide cash transfers—hundreds of thousands of Mexicans obtain remittances from the US.
Guatemala, then again, is an rising market with huge potential. About 50 per cent of the inhabitants stays unbanked. Whereas some embedded finance options exist already — largely in funds — there’s a notable lack of regulatory depth. Nevertheless, this additionally presents a possibility to introduce progressive monetary companies shortly, unhindered by legacy programs or outdated know-how.
What’s FitBank doing to enhance the embedded finance sector in Brazil and Latin America?
In Brazil, we’ve constructed a strong basis and are experiencing constant progress. Considered one of our key methods has been to supply white-label monetary infrastructure and BaaS options to ERP suppliers, permitting them to concentrate on their core enterprise whereas leveraging our platform.
We at the moment present monetary know-how infrastructure to over 160 monetary teams, not directly serving greater than 100 million customers yearly. In 2025, we additionally started working as a direct credit score firm (sociedade de crédito direto), permitting us to situation and handle financial institution credit score notes (CCBs) and faucet into the large market of credit score transactions.
In Mexico, we’ve been working since 2023 by a partnership with Actinver, a neighborhood financial institution, providing a complete suite of economic companies. We’re additionally within the technique of increasing additional, with plans to accumulate a brand new operations within the nation.
In Guatemala, we’re finalising a partnership with a serious retail chain to facilitate digital funds for each clients and staff.
How does embedded finance in Latin America evaluate to the remainder of the world?
The important thing distinction is its real-world affect. In Latin America, embedded finance performs a important position in monetary inclusion and social mobility. For instance, Brazil’s PIX system turned probably the most extensively used fee methodology within the nation inside a brief interval, revolutionising how individuals deal with transactions.
In lots of Latin American international locations the place a big portion of the inhabitants is unbanked or underbanked, embedded finance solves a urgent situation: entry to monetary companies. In distinction, in additional developed markets reminiscent of Europe, the US, or Asia, embedded finance is commonly centered on comfort, improved consumer expertise, and new income streams.
These markets additionally face distinctive challenges — as an example, within the US, regulatory fragmentation throughout states can considerably complicate the rollout of nationwide embedded finance options.
What are some distinctive embedded finance challenges related to Brazil, Guatemala, and Mexico?
All three markets are wealthy in alternative however differ when it comes to complexity and maturity. Many corporations in these areas both lack legacy programs or have minimal technological debt, which permits for speedy implementation of recent options.
In Brazil, the problem lies in sustaining progress and our aggressive edge inside a extremely regulated and developed market. In Mexico, the main focus is on leveraging the present ecosystem whereas navigating evolving laws. Nevertheless, in Guatemala, the principle problem is foundational — constructing monetary entry from the bottom up and fostering belief in digital companies.
What are your future plans?
Synthetic intelligence is the following frontier — and a non-negotiable one. FitBank is absolutely dedicated to creating AI-powered monetary companies. In late 2024, we launched MaiaPaga, or just Maia—an AI-driven assistant that enables customers to scan and pay payments through a photograph, schedule funds, and extra — all by WhatsApp. Maia can be getting used as a digital assistant in our credit score market and can quickly be obtainable to customers in Mexico as effectively.
In March 2025, we partnered with Mastercard to launch Xpertia, an answer designed for ERPs to supply white-label monetary companies. It integrates seamlessly into ERP platforms, enabling them to ship a full spectrum of embedded monetary capabilities. Brazil is at the moment the fifth-largest ERP market on this planet, with progress effectively above the worldwide common, making this a major strategic alternative.
Remaining ideas
We’re very optimistic in regards to the future. FitBank has a novel capability to scale and course of transactions by a proprietary core banking system developed solely by our in-house know-how group. This permits us to ship high-performance, low-cost infrastructure with seamless integration capabilities, opening the door to numerous potentialities for sustainable, sturdy progress throughout Latin America and past.
