South and North America
The Americas have always been lands of opportunity. Prehistoric settlers and modern immigrants alike have looked to the New World
for a fresh start in greener pastures. More than anything, the Americas offer variety and choice: from the rich, established
and progressive economies of Canada and the United States to the fledgling, promising new opportunities of Latin America,
these two continents offer something for everyone.
Countries in the Americas
North America is a continent rich in economic opportunity and is the largest and most highly-developed economy in the world. The U.S. dollar is the most-used currency in international transactions. The South American continent represents the economy of 12 nations, with Chile and Brazil leading the pack in terms of wealth. Regional economies experienced a growth-spurt in the 1990’s, when the South American nations adopted a Free-Market economy and overcame the debt crisis. Today, mining, agriculture and forestry are South America’s major industries.
United States
The United States is the leading global military power and a formidable force politically, culturally and academically. US economy is fueled by natural resources and a high level of productivity.
Brazil
Brazil is active in several industries including mining, agriculture, services and manufacturing and has been expanding its presence in the global commodities markets. Brazil is one of the major exporting countries in the world with major exports including electrical goods, coffee, orange juice, soya beans, corned beef, aircraft, footwear, textile items, iron and steel.
Argentina
Argentina’s emerging markets are growing and as overall market conditions are improving, the sovereign risk is falling. Impact investment, which was vehemently opposed by the previous government, is being embraced, and conditions favourable to these investments are being fashioned. I
North America is a continent rich in economic opportunity and is the largest and most highly-developed economy in the world.
Companies Investing in the Americas
America’s Fortune 500 companies represented two-thirds of the U.S. GDP in 2017. Together, these companies amassed $12 trillion in revenue and made $840 billion in profits. There are no surprises among the leading-players, with Apple listed as the third most profitable company, and Walmart holding the coveted number one position. Other big players are AT&, and retail-giant Amazon. The Americas offer fertile ground for companies wishing to establish themselves there or grow their current operations into the region.
Redpoint Ventures
Redpoint Ventures, an American investment firm that invests in local industry giants as well as a variety of companies in South America, particularly in Brazil and Colombia.
SoftBank Capital
SoftBank Capital, a top US-based investment company involved in all investment stages, with focus on technology, mobile telecommunications, and SaaS.
Socialatom Ventures
Socialatom Ventures is a seed capital firm founded by entrepreneur and investor Andrés Barreto. The company invests in global tech startups located across the Americas and are pioneers in the recent entrepreneurial ecosystem development in Latin America.
Avalon Ventures
Avalon Ventures is an early stage venture capital fund particularly focused on making investments in information technology, biotechnology, healthcare, pharmaceutical, venture capital and life sciences.
Founders Fund
Founders Fund is a leading VC firm that has been involved in the early stages of some of the most important fintech developments of the past two decades.
GP Investments
GP Investments is a Brazilian alternative investment company with a focus on technology investments. Learn about the company’s history and find out about its most significant investments.
WIND Ventures
WIND Ventures is a Corporate Capital Venture focusing on start-ups and scale-ups in new mobility, eco energy, and retail, to boost their growth in Latin America.
Princeville Capital
Princeville Capital is a US-based investment company which is focused on growth-stage technology companies.
The Americas offer fertile ground for companies wishing to establish themselves there or grow their current operations into the region.
Investors in the Americas
The United States is one of the most popular countries in the world for foreign investment. It has many competitive advantages which help it hold this coveted position. These include its open regulatory environment, leading consumer market and culture that supports entrepreneurism and innovation. The United Kingdom is the largest direct investor in the US, followed by Japan, The Netherlands, Canada and, surprisingly due to its tiny size, Luxembourg.
Julio Vasconcellos
Julio Vasconcellos is a Brazilian/American angel investor and entrepreneur focused on investments in eCommerce, SaaS and mobile industries.
Reid Hoffman
Reid Hoffman is an American Internet entrepreneur and investor, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of LinkedIn. He is also a Partner at Greylock Partners, a venture capital company.
Val Babajov
Val Babajov is a US-based serial angel investor and entrepreneur. He is the founder and managing partner of VoiVoda Ventures and the founder and president of SoftAvail, Inc. and an angel investor with Band of Angels, one of the original groups of angel investors in Silicon Valley.
Murray Edwards
Murray Edwards is a Canadian oil sands investor and businessman ranked by Forbes as one of the top 15 wealthiest people in Canada.
James Ahern
James “Jim” Ahern is the managing partner of Laidlaw & Company UK and the founder of Laidlaw Venture Partners (LVP).
Christine Tsai
Christine Tsai, a Guam business executive who co-founded and heads 500 Startups, a global company on a mission to discover and back the world’s most talented entrepreneurs.
Andrés Barreto
Andrés Barreto, a Colombian-American entrepreneur who is involved with several investments that tie the US to Latin America.
Pietro Dova
Pietro Dova is a former Google executive and the cofounder of XG Ventures (X-Google Ventures), a leading VC firm in the mobile, IT, analytics and e-commerce spaces.
Featured Stories from the Americas
Read our featured stories from around the American continents, and discover the latest investment developments and trends that may help shape your view of the region.
Apple Quietly Gets On-Board With AI
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The Economic Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic
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Bank of America Has The Edge in Tech
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