Marcelo Claure’s Latin America fund makes first investment

A fund established by former SoftBank executive Marcelo Claure and focused on Latin America has made its first investment with a $25mn bet on a Brazilian motorcycle rental start-up. 

São Paulo-based Mottu announced on Friday a $50mn Series C funding round jointly led by Claure’s Bicycle Capital and venture capital group QED Investors. 

Claure said now was the ideal moment for investing in the region’s tech sector, following a slump in VC funding amid a global downturn.

“If you look at the best funds that have generated high returns and the best companies, they usually start in a downcycle like this one, where there’s higher need for capital and fewer capital providers,” he told the Financial Times. “A lot of geopolitical issues have emerged that position LatAm in our opinion as a great place to invest and deploy capital.”

Mottu offers a low-cost hire service for delivery drivers from disadvantaged communities. 

“We were born in a garage and provide a tool for people to be able to work as couriers,” said Rubens Zanelotto, its chief executive and founder. “We are heading to double our rental business next year”.

The company said the fundraising was at a premium to its previous valuation but declined to disclose the figure, citing potential security risks because of where it operates. 

Bicycle is contributing $20mn towards the primary proceeds, in addition to a purchase of equity from selling shareholders, according to two people with direct knowledge of the deal.

Its debut investment marks a milestone in the comeback of Claure. Once a high-flying figure at SoftBank, he departed the Japanese technology conglomerate last year after a falling out with top boss Masayoshi Son. 

The Bolivian-born billionaire was the driving force behind SoftBank’s $8bn push into Latin America, where it ranks among the top tech investors.

Claure recently unveiled Bicycle, a growth equity firm managed with fellow SoftBank alumnus Shu Nyatta. Initial commitments of $440mn were anchored by the Claure family office and Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala. 

Bicycle is targeting a total size of $500mn for the inaugural fund and plans three to four deals annually, over a period of up to four years. Claure described Mottu as the “perfect example of a disruptive business model”.

“The way it’s set up doesn’t exist anywhere else,” he told the FT. “It’s creating mini-entrepreneurs who can rent a bike and be able to make significantly more than what they were before.”

VC investments into Latin American start-ups rocketed to a record $16bn in 2021. But as interest rates rose to tackle inflation, the amount deployed slumped by half to $7.9bn in 2022, according to the Latin American Venture Capital Association. In the first six months of 2023, it stood at $1.7bn. 

Founded in 2020, Mottu is present in Brazil and Mexico with a workforce of 1,800 and 50,000 rental customers. It also runs a last-mile logistics marketplace for restaurants, retailers and ecommerce as well as repair garages and its own motorcycle assembly line. 

The start-up has positive earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation and expects to surpass $100mn of annual recurring revenue this year, according to its chief executive. 

Mottu says that since launching it has secured $150mn of funding, from backers including Tiger Global. Endeavor Catalyst and Caravela also participated in the latest round.