Addi

Addi is a Colombian BNPL service provider offering point-of-sale financing in 3-24 monthly installments at rates that range from 0%-28% for transactions between USD 30-USD 7,000. Upon signing up, Addi conducts a credit check and then assigns first-time users a pre-approved credit quota that can be used for purchases. Furthermore, new clients are required to guarantee their first credit approval through a bond signed with the Antioquia Guarantee Fund. In return, clients are required to pay between 0%-13% of the purchase value depending on their risk profile along with their monthly installment. If users default on payments, the platform adds collection fees ranging from 6%-14% of the payment due, depending on the number of days in default.

The platform uses third parties to originate around 90% of its installment loans. Its integrations with e-commerce platforms in the region, such as VTEX, Nuvemshop, and WooCommerce, enable it to plug into any online merchant checkout in the region. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Addi lost 99% of its gross merchandise value (GMV), but returned to its pre-pandemic levels in March/April 2021. As of December 2021, its customer base reached over 500,000, and it reported around 1,000 merchant partners.

The company’s co-founders, Santiago Suarez, Daniel Vallejo, and Elmer Ortega, have considerable experience in consumer lending and financial services. Suarez was previously in charge of product development at JPMorgan Chase, and strategy and corporate development at a peer-to-peer lending startup, LendingClub. Meanwhile, Vallejo was previously at McKinsey and focused on consumer banking, while Ortega was a risk and technology manager at TFG, a leading Colombian trading firm.

Addi’s broader growth plans include scaling operations in Brazil and Colombia, product development, and its geographic expansion into Mexico, where it intends to launch in early 2022.

Funding and financials

In March 2024, Addi raised USD 86 million in funding which comprised USD 36 million in equity funding from Union Square Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and GIC Private Ltd., and USD 50 million in debt funding from Goldman Sachs Group, with a post-money valuation of nearly USD 350 million. The company planned to use the funds to support expansion within the Colombian market.