USA WAS THE MAIN INVESTOR IN HISTORIC 2021 FOR BOGOTA-BASED STARTUPS

Bogota is emerging as one of the main business centers in the region, its privileged location and dynamic development make it day to day one a very appealing place for large companies worldwide; in addition to its attractiveness as an epicenter of the business world in the region, it increasingly stands out in the new trend of startups and the entrepreneurship phenomenon.

Bogota is the economic, cultural and administrative center of Colombia, which in turn is the ideal gateway for the Latin American market due to its location, political stability, and economic development.

An analysis carried out by Invest in Bogota shows that during 2021, startups based in the capital of Colombia carried out 115 capital raising operations, equivalent to 69.6% of the transactions of startups nationwide.

In total, Bogota-based ventures raised resources for more than US$ 1,596 million. This figure, an annual record high in terms of capital raised for startups in the city, confirms Bogota as the investment epicenter of the country's ecosystem and as one of the most important destinations for entrepreneurship in Latin America.

The amount of capital raised in 2021 shows an increase of 144% compared to 2020, when transactions were made for US$ 650 million. In addition, this represents an 18% increase over what was raised in 2019.The sectors with the greatest appetite among investors in 2021 were transportation, software and IT services, financial services, and communications.

"Bogota's entrepreneurship ecosystem is going through a unique moment in history, so we must redouble our efforts to position local startups internationally," highlighted Invest in Bogota's Executive Director, Isabella Muñoz, who added that the number of deals closed by the city's startups in 2021 grew by 11% compared to the previous year.

The Secretary of Economic Development, Alfredo Bateman, said that "this is a sign of the good eyes with which investors see us today," but warned that "we must continue to strengthen the ecosystem of entrepreneurship and investment in the city by identifying and managing to eliminate the factors that hinder the arrival of more investment funds and venture capital.

Figures also show that 47 Colombian startups closed investments of at least US$ 1 million each last year. Some startups based in Bogota Region that stood out for their capital raising operations are Rappi, Platzi, Habi, Addi and Frubana.

The United States, which participated in at least 52 of the transactions closed with startups in Bogota, appears as the country that invested the most last year. The analysis was based on information from platforms such as Crunchbase, Emis and TTR and Invest in Bogota databases.

As part of its task of articulating the city's entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem, Invest in Bogota works to attract investment vehicles to fund the growth of local startups. Likewise, the entity is attracting new private capital to settle in the city and accompany the growth of the ecosystem. In 2021, through Invest in Bogota, two investments were made with the funds Blackshiip and Kalonia Venture Partners.

Bogota Region, thanks to its young skilled workforce, strategic geographical location, and the ease of doing business in the city has emerged in the last years as one of the principal cities for entrepreneurship in the region. Here are some successful startups that were created and established in the city region.

• Agroune is a platform where people invest in agriculture with low risk, optimal returns and impacting a farmer in need.

• Appen is a technology company that gives free internet in Exchange for advertising and data used to profile audiences, focused on quality leads that brings value to companies.

• Aptuno is a search platform for apartments and houses for rente in Colombia. It use technology to make housing leasing easier and more efficient, for tenants and owners.

• Trii is an app that allows people to invest in Colombian stocks in an easy, fast and safe way from.

About Invest in Bogota

Invest in Bogota is the investment promotion agency for Bogota, a public-private partnership between the Bogota Chamber of Commerce and the Bogota City Government. Our mission is to support investors that are exploring opportunities in Bogota. In 2009 we were ranked as the top non- OECD investment promotion agency in the world by the World Bank. We have a multidisciplinary team with sector-specific expertise, which allows us to provide prospective investors with value-added advice and information.

Find out more information: investinbogota.org

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