MONASHEES
Monashees is a São Paulo-based venture capital firm founded in 2005 and the first Silicon Valley-style VC in Latin America. It backs early-stage technology founders across Latam from offices in São Paulo, Mexico City, and San Francisco, with dedicated AI programs Shiva and the Gama Fund.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersSão Paulo, Brazil
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What MONASHEES does
Monashees is the first Silicon Valley-style venture capital firm in Latin America, founded in 2005 by Eric Acher and Fabio Igel and headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil. The firm operates as a sector-agnostic, early-stage investment platform backing bold, technology-driven founders building category-defining companies from Latin America to global markets. The core offering is direct venture capital investment through fund management, supplemented by two specialized AI-focused programs: Shiva, a pre-seed AI-native founder acceleration and funding program operated in partnership with Endeavor Catalyst; and the Gama Fund, a pre-seed/seed AI-native co-investment program operated in partnership with Google's AI Futures Fund. Monashees maintains offices in São Paulo, Mexico City, and San Francisco, enabling cross-border deal flow and US market access for portfolio companies.
The portfolio spans more than 100 investments across fintech, AI, healthcare, music technology, enterprise software, logistics, and consumer sectors, with at least 8 companies reaching $1B+ valuations. Notable active portfolio companies include Vambe (AI-native conversational commerce), Rivio (AI hospital revenue cycle), Moises (AI audio platform with 40M+ users), Astor (AI investment advisory), Tractian (AI industrial monitoring), Addi (AI-powered e-commerce credit), Neon (Brazilian digital bank), Ualá (Argentine fintech), and Pomelo (Latam payments infrastructure). The firm has produced multiple high-profile exits including Elo7 (acquired by Etsy), Enjoei (IPO), Neoway (acquired by B3), and VivaReal/Grupo Zap (acquired by OLX).
Monashees generates returns through traditional venture capital economics: equity investments in early-stage technology companies with returns realized via M&A and IPO exits. The firm operates a partnership structure led by Co-Founder and Managing Partner Eric Acher, General Partners Marcelo Lima (fintech and enterprise/B2B, joined 2010) and Caio Bolognesi (fintech, healthcare, enterprise, joined 2014), and Partner Fabiola Quinzaños (fintech, climatech, consumer; leads Mexico operations, joined 2021). The firm's competitive positioning rests on two decades of Latam tech ecosystem presence, an extensive founder and co-investor network, and its "Global Latam" thesis that bridges Latin American founders to US and global capital markets.
MONASHEES firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MONASHEES
- Legal name
- Monashees
- Website
- https://monashees.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Monashees is a São Paulo-based venture capital firm founded in 2005 and the first Silicon Valley-style VC in Latin America. It backs early-stage technology founders across Latam from offices in São Paulo, Mexico City, and San Francisco, with dedicated AI programs Shiva and the Gama Fund.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
MONASHEES industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Multi-Sector / Generalist Growth Equity (FSANACAO)
Keywords
Where MONASHEES is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- São Paulo
- HQ country
- Brazil
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices3 records
Markets served
MONASHEES business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Venture Capital Returns: Monashees generates returns through equity investments in early-stage technology companies across Latin America. Returns are realized through portfolio company exits via M&A or IPO events, with the firm having produced multiple unicorn outcomes and successful exits including Elo7 (acquired by Etsy), Enjoei (IPO), Jusbrasil, MadeiraMadeira, Neoway (acquired by B3), and VivaReal/Grupo Zap (acquired by OLX).
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
MONASHEES product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Monashees is a venture capital firm that invests early-stage equity capital in technology-driven founders and startups across Latin America, spanning pre-seed through Series C rounds. The firm also operates two named programs: Shiva (a pre-seed AI-native founder acceleration program with Endeavor Catalyst) and the Gama Fund (a pre-seed/seed AI-native co-investment program with Google's AI Futures Fund). Returns are generated through portfolio company exits via M&A or IPO events.
Product overview
MONASHEES is the first Silicon Valley–style venture capital firm in Latin America, founded in 2005 and based in São Paulo, Mexico City, and San Francisco. The firm operates as a single unified investment platform that backs bold, technology-driven founders building category-defining companies from Latin America to the world. The core offerings include direct venture capital investment through fund management and two named investment programs: Shiva (pre-seed AI-native founder acceleration with Endeavor Catalyst) and Gama Fund (pre-seed/seed AI-native co-investment with Google's AI Futures Fund). The portfolio spans 18+ companies across fintech, AI, healthcare, music technology, enterprise software, and consumer sectors.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Shiva: Community, acceleration and funding for pre-seed AI Native founders, in partnership with Endeavor Catalyst
- Gama Fund
Products and services
- Shiva Community, acceleration and funding program for pre-seed AI-native founders, operated in partnership with Endeavor Catalyst. Provides resources to help entrepreneurs build global companies using AI.
- Gama Fund Co-investment program backing ambitious pre-seed or seed AI-native startups, operated in partnership with Google's AI Futures Fund. Monashees provides deal sourcing and portfolio support while Google contributes AI expertise and resources.
Quantifiable outcome
- Produced multiple unicorn outcomes including companies with $1B+ valuations
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use MONASHEES
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
MONASHEES technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
MONASHEES partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
MONASHEES competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Kaszek: Argentina-founded, Latam-focused multi-stage VC and the closest direct peer to Monashees. Both firms invest across the region at seed through Series C, compete for the same founders, and frequently co-invest (e.g., Pomelo Series C).
- Valor Capital Group: US-Brazil cross-border VC firm investing in early- and growth-stage Latam tech companies. Like Monashees, Valor targets founders with global ambitions and benefits from a US presence for cross-border deal flow.
- QED Investors: Fintech-focused VC that actively leads and co-invests in Latam (e.g., Fénix Pago with Monashees). Overlapping fintech thesis and shared deal flow make it a direct comparable despite its global remit.
- Atlantico: Latam-focused early- and growth-stage VC investing across Brazil, Mexico, and other regional markets. Direct overlap in geography, stage, and sector breadth, and frequently co-invests with Monashees (e.g., Vambe).
Broad incumbents
- Andreessen Horowitz: Global mega-VC that increasingly deploys into Latam (e.g., NG.CASH with Monashees). Not Latam-focused but a competitive incumbent that Monashees must either co-invest with or compete against for premium deals.
- Sequoia Capital: Global tier-1 VC that has begun deploying into Latam at scale. Comparable as a co-investor in Monashees' rounds (e.g., Gigi) and as a brand that Latam founders aspire to attract.
- New Enterprise Associates (NEA): Global VC with significant Latam activity (e.g., NG.CASH Series B led by NEA with Monashees). Comparable as a generalist with deep pockets and broad sector mandate.
- Insight Partners: Global growth- and software-focused VC that has co-led Latam rounds (e.g., Pomelo Series C). Comparable as a deep-pocketed growth investor that competes with Monashees in later-stage deals.
- General Catalyst: Global multi-stage VC with an active Latam and fintech thesis. Comparable as a generalist firm expanding into the same geographies and stages that Monashees serves.
Emerging players
- Ribbit Capital: Global fintech-focused VC participating in Latam rounds alongside Monashees (e.g., Ualá Series B). Comparable as a sector specialist whose Latam presence overlaps with Monashees' fintech-heavy portfolio.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
MONASHEES social profiles
Digital presenceMONASHEES financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MONASHEES leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
MONASHEES funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MONASHEES M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments319 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MONASHEES
What does MONASHEES do?
Monashees is a venture capital firm that invests early-stage equity capital in technology-driven founders and startups across Latin America, spanning pre-seed through Series C rounds. The firm also operates two named programs: Shiva (a pre-seed AI-native founder acceleration program with Endeavor Catalyst) and the Gama Fund (a pre-seed/seed AI-native co-investment program with Google's AI Futures Fund). Returns are generated through portfolio company exits via M&A or IPO events.
Is MONASHEES a public or private company?
MONASHEES is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was MONASHEES founded?
MONASHEES was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is MONASHEES based?
MONASHEES is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil, in the Latin America region.
How does MONASHEES make money?
One revenue line is on record: venture Capital Returns.
Who are MONASHEES's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Kaszek, Valor Capital Group, QED Investors and Atlantico. Broad incumbents are Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Insight Partners and General Catalyst. Ribbit Capital is listed as an emerging player.
Does MONASHEES have an API?
No public API is recorded for MONASHEES.
What industry is MONASHEES in?
MONASHEES's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANACAO, Multi-Sector / Generalist Growth Equity. Its NAICS code is 523940 and its SIC code is 6282.