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Meet the six finalists of the 2018 WeXchange Pitch competition

The Pitch Competition’s final will take place during the sixth edition of WeXchange, on November 6th and 7th at the Universidad del Pacifico, in Lima, Peru.

WeXchange, the platform that connects high-growth women entrepreneurs from Latin America and the Caribbean with mentors and investors, announced the six finalist entrepreneurs of the Pitch Competition selected from more than 200 applicants from Latin America and the Caribbean. On this occasion the competition had the theme "Women STEMpreneurs in the Digital Era" and the most innovative dynamic entrepreneur in the region will be awarded with the opportunity to participate in the exclusive Innovation Experience program in Israel. The winner and the finalists will also receive memberships at WeWork LATAM offices, access to mentorships provided by Everis experts, and other attractive prizes offered by Swisscontact, LAVCA and Crehana. The pitch competition is organized by Angel Ventures.

The finalists stand out for leading enterprises in STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and will present their projects during the WeXchange forum, in front of a jury of investors who will select the most innovative entrepreneur in the region. The six finalists are:

  • Laura Mendoza, CPO of Unima (Mexico). Unima is a biotechnology company that develops rapid and low-cost diagnostic devices and disease surveillance technology.
  • Amparo Nalvarte, CEO and Co-founder of Culqi (Peru). Culqi is an online payment platform that adds multiple payment methods, making it easier for businesses in Latin America and the Caribbean to accept payments with a single integration.
  • María Laura Palacios, CTO of AgroPuma (Argentina). AgroPuma is a unique agricultural management platform that allows to visualize, store and manage all the information generated during the production process.
  • Angela Pinzón, Co-founder of DashFleet (Colombia). DashFleet is an intelligent transport system that runs on a proprietary hardware called BlackBox that has different applications, including control and fleet management, onboard entertainment system, people counting, on-board video surveillance and sleep detection of drivers.
  • Marina Solanas, Co-CEO of WABA.network (Argentina). WABA.network is a FinTech startup that allows communities to address socio-economic challenges by implementing their own financial systems. Its blockchain-based platform helps SMEs and local stores increase production and sales by reducing credit costs and attracting customers.
  • Juliana Villalba, CEO and Co-founder of Rebus (Colombia). Rebus is the first solution for event management with Artificial Intelligence (AI) that gives attendees a personalized experience in less than eight seconds.

The countries with the highest number of applications this year were Peru, Mexico and Colombia. The finalists selection process was based on the basic requirements that the ventures have operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, and that they will also have a scalable product or service related to the STEM disciplines. The selection was in charge of a virtual judging panel composed of the following institutions:

• Funds: Agrega Partners (Dominican Republic), Alaya Capital Partners (Argentina), Ameris (Chile), Angel Ventures (Regional), Arkfund (Mexico), DADNEO (Chile), Elevar Equity (Colombia), Ignia (Mexico), Fondo SP (Colombia), GB Fund (Peru), Magma Partners (Chile), Maschmeyer Group Ventures (USA), Mountain Nazca (Colombia), Village Capital (Mexico), Wayra (Peru), 37 Angels (USA) and 500 Startups (Mexico).

• Accelerators | Programs: StartUPC (Peru), UTEC Ventures (Peru), StartUp Peru (Peru), BlueBox (Mexico), Endeavor (Peru), NXTPLabs (Argentina), TechStars (Berlin), Seedstars (Colombia), Swiss Contact (Peru), COFIDE (Peru) and IEEM Business School (Uruguay)

• Startups: AmigoCloud (USA), Bocadio (Peru), Homie (Mexico), Aprendiendo.la (Peru), Gaszen (Mexico), Poliglota (Peru), Kurios (Peru), SimCase (Peru)

• Companies: Private Advising Group (USA), Montezuma & Porto (Peru), Winnipeg Capital (Peru), Spark (Peru), Shift (Peru)

WeXchange provides women entrepreneurs the opportunity to meet other entrepreneurs, connect with investors, participate in mentoring and create professional networks that help them scale exponentially their business.

If you are interested in attending the WeXchange forum, register here for free.

About the IDB

The Inter-American Development Bank's mission is to improve lives. Founded in 1959, the IDB is one of the main sources of long-term financing for the economic, social and institutional development of Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB also conducts state-of-the-art research projects and provides policy advice, technical assistance and training to public and private clients throughout the region. www.iadb.org

About MIF

The MIF serves as the IDB Group's innovation laboratory to promote development through the private sector by identifying, supporting, and testing new solutions for development challenges and seeking to create opportunities for poor and vulnerable populations in the region of Latin American and the Caribbean. To play this role, the MIF involves and inspires the private sector and collaborates with the public sector when necessary. www.fomin.org

About Angel Ventures

Angel Ventures is a venture capital firm focused on making investments in early-stage and early-growth stages, based in Mexico City, with offices in Guadalajara, Lima and Bogota. Angel Ventures has made investments worth more than US $ 40 million through its investment fund and AV Network, a regional network of angel investors with more than 400 members.

Angel Ventures manages AV Pacific Alliance Fund II, a regional fund with US $ 50 million in committed capital and AVP Seed Fund I, a fund based in Peru with US $ 1.5 million in committed capital. www.angelventures.vc

About Universidad del Pacífico

Emprende UP, is the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center of the Universidad del Pacífico, which promotes the interaction between talent, knowledge, capital and technology, to accelerate the development of innovative, productive and competitive companies capable of meeting the needs of an increasingly demanding society, facing an increasingly complex environment. In this sense, it supports the conception and creation of companies that transcend the need for survival of its creators to be located in the spaces of opportunity and innovation. http://www.emprendeup.pe/

External Contacts

Agustín Cáceres

Agustín Cáceres
Additional Contacts

Mosquera Mendoza,Carmen Cecilia

Mosquera Mendoza,Carmen Cecilia
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