Argentinian fintech Ualá to acquire Mexico’s ABC Capital

Argentinian fintech Ualá has agreed to purchase Mexican bank ABC Capital as it looks to speed up its growth plans in the North American country, according to a report by Reuters.

The bank is headquartered in Mexico City

The company launched in Argentina in 2017 before expanding its services to Mexico last year.

Ualá offers a personal wealth management app and a prepaid Mastercard card for in-store, online and ATM transactions and international payments.

In August, the fintech raised $350 million in a Series D funding round co-led by Chinese technology giant Tencent and Japanese investment firm SoftBank, reaching a valuation of around $2.45 billion.

Ualá CEO and founder Pierpaolo Barbieri said at the time he hopes to “bring Latin American financial services into the 21st century”.

In a recent blog post, Barbieri says “the team has grown 263%” since its launch in Mexico.

He adds the company hopes to boost financial inclusion in a region “where almost half of the adult population does not have access to the financial system”.