- Fund led by Marcelo Claure as Executive Chairman and Managing Partner alongside Shu Nyatta as Managing Partner
- Bicycle Capital is one of the largest first-time venture funds since market correction of 2022, with anchor commitments from Claure Group, Marcelo Claure’s Family Office, and Mubadala Investment Company
- Fund will be distributed to accredited investors in Brazil through BTG Pactual’s investment products platform
MIAMI and NEW YORK and SAO PAULO, June 14, 2023 — Bicycle Capital, a new growth equity firm focused on Latin America, has announced the launch of its first fund, Bicycle I with initial commitments of approximately US$440M, targeting a total fund size of US$500M. The firm will be led by Marcelo Claure as Executive Chairman and Managing Partner alongside Mwashuma (“Shu”) Nyatta as Managing Partner.
Marcelo Claure is the Founder & CEO of Claure Group, a multi-billion-dollar global investment firm. He has made a commitment to focus his time, capital, and expertise to Latin America over the next several years. As part of this commitment, in January 2023 Claure invested US$100 million in SHEIN, a leading, global on-demand fashion company, where he now serves as Chairman of Latin America. He is well known in Latin America generally and to founders in the region, having built Brightstar from a small distributor to the world’s largest global wireless distribution and services company. In addition, Claure led the turnaround of US wireless telecommunications company Sprint and helped orchestrate its US$195 billion merger with T-Mobile, creating what is now the most valuable telecommunications company in the world, with a market cap of nearly US$200 billion. Claure is also the former CEO of SoftBank Group International where he launched SoftBank’s $8B Latin America Funds.
Shu Nyatta is a former Managing Partner at SoftBank Group International where he, under the leadership of Claure, was a co-founder of SoftBank’s Latin America Funds as well as the SB Opportunity Fund for under-represented founders in the US. Prior to that, Nyatta was a Partner at SoftBank’s Vision Fund and a founding member of SoftBank’s growth investment team in San Francisco, starting in 2015. While at SoftBank, Shu invested in a broad range of industries and geographies, from semiconductors, AI and genomics in the US and Europe to marketplaces and fintechs in China, India and Latin America. Shu was previously an investment banker with JPMorgan and a consultant with McKinsey & Company.
Bicycle I is anchored by Mubadala Investment Company, an Abu Dhabi based sovereign investor, and Claure Group, Marcelo Claure’s family office. Additional capital commitments for the initial closing come from prominent global tech investors and founders.
Bicycle’s strategy is to partner very selectively with the best founders in the region, helping them scale their startups into resilient and valuable companies. Beyond capital, Bicycle will seek to work hand-in-hand with founders, sharing extensive experience gained from operating, scaling, transforming and exiting companies across geographies and industries. In addition, Bicycle will provide access to a global network of mentors, talent and commercial partners. Although Bicycle is focused primarily on founders in Latin America, the fund may also invest opportunistically in leading global growth-stage companies with meaningful business in Latin America.
Bicycle Capital represents a significant bet on Latin America, in particular Brazil and Mexico. These two countries have large, young populations with meaningful purchasing power, and are experiencing attractive geopolitical and macro-economic tailwinds; both are expected to be among the top 6 economies in the world by 20501. The new firm is founded on the conviction that Latin America is home to exceptional founders who are addressing large and attractive markets yet lack the reliable capital needed to achieve durable scale. This thesis has been reinforced by the team’s four years of experience working with startups across the region, during which time annual venture capital invested in Latin America initially increased from $3B in 2018 to a high of $16B in 20212, but then collapsed back down to less than $1B per quarter in 20233. This spike in capital attracted global talent and sparked bold new ideas, resulting in more early-stage companies being created in Latin America than ever before4. However, even in booming 2021, venture capital funding was only 0.3% of GDP in Latin America, compared to 0.7% in China, 1.1% in India and 1.5% in the United States5. As capital has dried up after the 2021 peak, many startups have been left stranded, especially at Series B and beyond. Bicycle’s strategy is to partner with a select number of these growth-stage companies, at fair prices, and help them scale into resilient, world-class businesses.
“This fund will be the cornerstone of my commitment to and focus on Latin America“, said Marcelo Claure. “Latin America has a unique combination of excellent founders, a digitally savvy population, and more opportunities than capital. Through Bicycle Capital, I am looking forward to deploying not only capital, but also my experience and connections to positively alter the trajectory of exceptional companies in the region.”
Shu Nyatta added, “The combination of talented founders and committed capital is a proven recipe for building great companies, but capital tends to be unevenly distributed. We get particularly energized when we find exceptional founders solving big problems in places that have been largely ignored by big pools of global capital, like Latin America. We believe these rare situations create the potential for outsized returns.”
Faris Sohail Al Mazrui, Head of Ventures and Growth at Mubadala, added: “We are excited to anchor Bicycle Capital’s first Latin America-focused fund. The startup ecosystem in Latin America is rapidly evolving, and we believe that there is significant potential to create value by supporting exceptional companies and founders in scaling their businesses. Mubadala has been investing in Brazil for more than a decade, and we look forward to broadening our exposure across the region through this partnership.”
Bicycle Capital is actively investing capital starting today.
About Claure Group
Claure Group is a multi-billion-dollar global investment firm founded by Marcelo Claure that spans multiple high growth sectors including tech, telecom, media, real estate, sports and others. The Claure Group portfolio includes investments in companies like T-Mobile, the world’s most valuable telecommunications company where Claure is the largest individual shareholder; SHEIN, the world’s fastest growing on-demand fashion company, where Claure advises the CEO as Chairman of Latin America; TelevisaUnivision, the leading Spanish-language media and content company; Nubank, one of the world’s largest digital financial services platforms; and Form Energy, an innovative energy storage technology and manufacturing company. Marcelo Claure is a beneficial owner of Bicycle Management Company, L.P. and will receive a portion of carried interest generated by the fund and thus has an incentive to recommend the fund, including over similar vehicles that may have lower fees.
About Mubadala
Mubadala Investment Company is a sovereign investor managing a global portfolio, aimed at generating sustainable financial returns for the Government of Abu Dhabi.
Mubadala’s $284 billion (AED 1045 billion) portfolio spans six continents with interests in multiple sectors and asset classes. We leverage our deep sectoral expertise and long-standing partnerships to drive sustainable growth and profit, while supporting the continued diversification and global integration of the economy of the United Arab Emirates. Mudabala is a beneficial owner of Bicycle Management Company, L.P. and will receive a portion of any carried interest generated by the fund and thus has an incentive to recommend the fund, including over similar vehicles that may have lower fees.
For more information about Mubadala Investment Company, please visit: www.mubadala.com.
1 PWC report “The World in 2050”; excludes Russia.
2 Pitchbook.
3 CB Insights.
4 LAVCA.
5 Pitchbook for VC investments; World Bank for GDP.
SOURCE Bicycle Capital
