Brazil-based venture capital firm SP Ventures has raised $50 million for its third fund following a $21 million second close announced Tuesday, bringing the vehicle closer to its $80 million target.
“Historically, the most challenging fundraising periods have been the best times to raise capital,” said Francisco Jardim, founder of SP Ventures, in an interview with The AgriBiz. The conviction appears to be shared by the firm’s backers.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), an investor in SP Ventures’ previous fund, doubled down with an $8 million anchor commitment. The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) matched that amount, eyeing projects aligned with Brazil’s federal government program to restore degraded pastureland, in which Japan has been actively engaged.
“They see the technologies and companies we are backing as pillars for enabling that transition,” Jardim said, citing some of SP Ventures investment goals such as biological inputs, artificial intelligence, digital systems and management tools.
The round also drew commitments from Brazil’s Grupo Colorado, a traditional sugar and ethanol producer; Colombia’s Manuelita Group, focused on sugar and sustainable food production; and The Nest, a Belgian family office targeting impact investments in agriculture.
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The predominantly foreign investor base reinforces SP Ventures’ position as a regional leader, Jardim said. “We have investors from five continents, highlighting the global appetite for Latin American agriculture. We are consolidating ourselves as a truly regional investor.”
Fund’s Thesis
SP Ventures’ third fund will focus on technologies and business models aimed at boosting climate resilience and farm productivity.
The firm plans to continue investing in agfintechs to expand access to credit through technology, next-generation biological inputs companies, and artificial intelligence applications — from tools that help streamline supply chains to AI-powered farm management systems.
Two companies have already received investments from the new vehicle: Produzindo Certo, a Brazil-based agtech specializing in traceability, and Blooms, a Mexican trade finance platform that funds agricultural exports to the U.S.
SP Ventures currently manages more than $100 million in assets.
