Mexico and Colombia represent two of Latin America’s most dynamic fintech markets, each shaping the next wave of financial innovation. Following a back-to-back trip to Mexico City and Bogotá, VEF Investment Principal Evin Mc Kay, who travelled together with CEO Dave Nangle, shares his key takeaways from conversations with founders, investors, regulators, and market participants.
What is the most exciting trend you’re seeing in the Mexican fintech ecosystem?
Mexico is undergoing a major shift in consumer finance, with the past 1-2 years showing a clear acceleration in customer adoption after more than a decade of fintech incubation. During our visit in Mexico City, what impressed me most was how far the leading consumer finance platforms have scaled, from startup challengers to full financial services players serving millions of users. These companies are moving beyond single-product, credit-first models toward broader digital banking propositions. A strong cohort of tech-first platforms is emerging and reshaping financial inclusion, positioning Mexico for its next phase of fintech growth.
This was your first trip to Bogotá. What surprised you most about the Colombian market? Despite being one of Latin America’s largest economies, Colombia is often underappreciated by international investors. On the ground, I was struck by the quality of local founders, the progressive though complex regulatory agenda, and the strong momentum across the ecosystem. Like Mexico, Colombia has a large informal market, high reliance on cash and a financial sector dominated by incumbents. Its strict regulatory pricing regime has also contributed to a deep structural credit gap. Despite these constraints, Colombia is experiencing rapid fintech adoption.
What is driving the acceleration of fintech in Colombia?
Two major shifts are unlocking progress. Newly granted banking licences are allowing credible challengers to compete more effectively with incumbent banks. Also, the launch of Bre-B, Colombia’s interoperable real-time payments system, is creating a more open and low-cost financial infrastructure. In Bogotá, we met breakout players across the buy-now-pay-later ecosystem, merchant acquiring and payments infrastructure, that are already building on this foundation. While Colombia shares many similarities with Mexico, it benefits from relatively limited competition, creating space for a new cohort of domestic fintech champions.
Given what you saw on the ground, how do you view the opportunity in Latin America going forward?
Spending time in Mexico and Colombia reinforced my view that structural gaps in emerging market financial services create generational opportunities for tech-first platforms. Many of our core markets are still at the early stages of what can become multi-decade growth trajectories, yet are already transforming access to financial products across Latin America. The rise of this new cohort of consumer finance platforms is encouraging, and the trip sharpened my view on the high-quality names that show real potential as the region matures.