On International Women’s Day, Juancho Te Presta and ALMA announce $10M financing raise to double-down on women-first lending initiatives in Colombia

Leading Colombian fintech company Juancho Te Presta is proud to announce its partnership with ALMA Sustainable Finance to provide loans to underserved Colombians, including women, gig workers, and entrepreneurs.

In Colombia, women have a lower level of access to financial products and services than men: for example, only 10% of women have a credit card, compared to 19% of men, and only 16% of women have taken out a formal loan compared to 29% of men.

The partnership provides funds for unique multi-channel growth opportunities in digital lending. The funding will be used to expand access to innovative digital credit products, especially to women who have been underserved by traditional financial institutions.

"Today we are thrilled to announce a US $10 million funding facility from ALMA Sustainable Finance. Juancho Te Presta wants to make credit available in record time for all, especially women, and with the backing of partners such as ALMA we will be able to further expand our services throughout Colombia," commented Juan E. Saldarriaga, CEO, and co-founder of Juancho Te Presta. "International Women’s Day is the perfect day to announce our partnership, since as a fast-growing fintech we are evolving and meeting the financial services needs of middle class Colombians, especially women, who represent more than 65% of our borrowers.”

Gautam Ivatury, ALMA Managing Partner, explained, "ALMA's mission is to provide creative, flexible financing to high-impact companies working with underserved customers and difficult-to-reach markets. Juancho Te Presta is exactly the type of partner we look for: dynamic, rapidly scaling, and built on proven technology-driven operations. We're eager to continue to grow with the team."

This comes on the heels of Juancho Te Presta’s tremendous progress towards solving the crucial missing piece in digital loans without collateral. Juancho Te Presta allows women to access loans of up to 5 million Colombian Pesos (about US$1,300) in just ten minutes without the need for a co-debtor or guarantor, with repayment periods of up to 24 months. The fintech lender uses state-of-the-art technology including AI, proprietary algorithms, and biometric verification to allow underserved groups such as gig workers, pensioners, and students to apply for a loan in just ten minutes.

Building on recent growth to serve more women

Juancho Te Presta is one of Colombia’s fastest growing fintechs, having disbursed over 15,000 loans since 2019. “Women are the engine of the economy in Latin America, who push ahead, work more and get paid less and better manage family finances,” said Mr. Saldarriaga. The partnership with ALMA will allow the company to scale up its lending activities, thus promoting greater inclusion and support for female professionals, mothers, gig workers, and entrepreneurs, in order to build a better social, economic and cultural future in Colombia.

About Juancho Te Presta

Juancho Te Presta is one of Colombia’s fastest growing fintechs, that aims to increase financial inclusion through 100% digital credit solutions for women, gig workers, entrepreneurs and students. Learn more at https://juanchotepresta.com.

About ALMA

ALMA is a sustainable finance investment firm that uses real-time data and analytics to provide debt capital to non-bank lenders and social impact businesses across five continents. ALMA seeks to be a permanent, on-tap source of debt that can grow alongside its partners. Learn more at www.almavest.com.