Alantra advises Keo World on a $500m funding facility to scale B2B supply financing in Mexico

Feb 2022

Debt financing

Value $500 million

London – Alantra, the global investment banking and asset management specialist, is pleased to announce that it has advised Keo World (“Keo” or “the Company”), a leading Buy Now, Pay Later (“BNPL”) fintech for businesses in Latin America, on securing a seven-year debt facility of up to $500 million from Hayfin Capital Management LLP. This facility will support the rapid growth of the Company’s Workeo offering, an over-the-top BNPL financing proposition for SMEs in Mexico.

Founded in 2020, Keo World is a BNPL fintech focused on credit solutions and supply financing for SMEs via an all-digital B2B enterprise ecosystem in partnership with American Express. Keo’s innovative underwriting and approval process has enabled it to grow rapidly and it now supports over 12,000 businesses through its product ecosystem. 

Leveraging its position as the first non-bank issuer for American Express (Amex) in Mexico, Keo provides an over-the-top BNPL solution via its Workeo offering for Amex B2B merchants without any additional platform integration requirements.

“We are delighted to have completed this transaction with the support of the Alantra team. The funding arrangement will enable us to grow the reach of our B2B supply financing program to many more businesses in Mexico,” said Paolo Fidanza, Founder and CEO of Keo. “In a market where less than 12% of total traditional credit is extended to SMBs, our Workeo product allows buyers to access key inventory on credit, and suppliers to increase their recurring sales and enhance working capital management via an all-digital, frictionless, and low-cost inventory financing platform, enabled by virtual Keo Amex cards.” 

“We are very pleased to have assisted Keo in executing this important transaction. The result is a testament to the hard work of everyone involved and we look forward to supporting Keo’s continued growth. This transaction further strengthens Alantra’s position as a trusted advisor of NBFIs,” commented James Fadel, Managing Director at Alantra.