WASHINGTON — IDB Lab, the innovation and venture capital arm of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, announced a strategic investment of $1.5 million in the financial technology startup Aviva in Mexico. Founded in 2022, Aviva leverages AI-powered kiosks to expand access to financial services among underserved communities across the country.
As its first venture debt operation in Latin America, this investment represents a strategic milestone for IDB Lab, and it positions the multilateral institution to potentially become one of Aviva’s key equity shareholders in the future. It also reinforces IDB Lab’s commitment to support innovative and high-growth companies in scaling impact, while also spotlighting efforts to strengthen Mexico’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Aviva offers loans of up to $1,000 to individuals living in cities with fewer than 500,000 inhabitants where formal financial services are still limited. Through its kiosks, Aviva offers a paperless, document-free, conversational loan origination process and credit onboarding that only takes 7 minutes. By leveraging technologies such as machine learning, computer vision, and natural language processing, Aviva transforms conversations into data to accurately assess creditworthiness in real time, breaking with conventional form-based credit applications.
“We recognized how Aviva’s innovative phygital approach directly addresses persistent barriers to financial inclusion in underserved markets. Aviva has gained strong growth and market traction in the last years, and IDB Lab’s financing reinforces its commitment to scalable innovative solutions for inclusive finance,” said Magdalena Coronel, acting Chief of the Venture Capital Investments Division at IDB Lab.
“At Aviva, we ask customers to share their stories instead of imposing rigid requirements like employment records or bank statements. Their stories matter — using the latest technology, we turn them into tangible value, giving our customers access to premium financial products,” said Filiberto Castro, Co-CEO and Founder of Aviva.
IDB Lab's convertible venture financing will support Aviva as it scales its loan portfolio and expands operations into additional underserved areas of Mexico. Aviva currently operates more than 70 kiosks and expects to reach 150 by the end of the year. To date, Aviva has raised over $ 16 million in equity, underscoring significant investor confidence in its innovative model and market potential. With IDB Lab’s support, Aviva aims to tap at a 70 million people market.
This milestone is especially relevant within IDB Lab’s broader efforts to deepen collaboration with local stakeholders by channeling resources towards high-impact solutions.
About IDB Lab
IDB Lab is the innovation and venture capital arm of the Inter-American Development Bank Group. We discover new ways to drive social inclusion, environmental action, and productivity in Latin America and the Caribbean. IDB Lab leverages financing, knowledge, and connections to support early-stage entrepreneurship, foster new technologies, activate innovative markets, and catalyze existing sectors. www.idblab.org
About Aviva
Aviva is a financial technology startup, unlocking financial services for 70 million people who primarily live in small towns across Mexico. Aviva combines computer vision and artificial intelligence with a network of kiosks to offer loans ranging from $100 to $1,000. Founded in September 2022 by Filiberto Castro, David Hernández, Amran Frey, and Israel García, Aviva operates over 70 kiosks across eight Mexican states, providing premium credit products focused on unleashing the potential of millions of people who are underbanked.