Investment in startups aims to develop IoT market in Brazil
The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) and Qualcomm Ventures LLC, investment arm of Qualcomm Incorporated, selected Indicator Capital as the equity investment fund manager focused on startups that develop products and services for the Internet of Things (or Internet of Things (IoT).
The fund is expected to raise R$ 160 million to invest in companies in companies at an early stage of development, with BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures already committed to invest up to R$ 40 million each. Other investors will be invited to participate and assist in the composition of the total amount. The objective of BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures with the launch of the fund is to promote the IoT sector in Brazil.
According to Bruno Laskowsky, Director of Capital Markets and Participations at BNDES, the fund's initiative is fully aligned with the Bank's purpose of generating social impact, positively transforming the lives of people and companies and making the economy more productive. He also highlights the partnership with the private sector: “We believe that the IoT Fund stimulates the formation of innovation as a whole and expands our strategic role in fostering the capital market, making the allocation of public resources potentiated by acting in partnership with the private sector ”.
“The fund, whose thesis is based on studies carried out in partnership with the Ministry of Science, Technology, Innovation (MCTI), is already born with a private investor with an international presence, demonstrating the potential of IoT in Brazil. We hope that Indicator Capital will attract other private investors, including in the corporate venture model, catalyzing a virtuous circle of investment in small technology-based companies ”, explains Filipe Borsato, head of the BNDES 'Fund Investment Management Department.
“This initiative is in line with our goal of accelerating the Internet of Things ecosystem in Brazil. At a time when companies are looking for productivity gains to increase their global competitiveness, IoT emerges as one of the main pillars of digital transformation and sector 4.0 ”, says Alexandre Villela, senior director of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and executive director of Qualcomm Ventures in Latin America. “We are very excited to be able to collaborate with Indicator Capital on this initiative and use our IoT experience to promote innovation and support emerging companies in this segment”.
The bottom - The IoT fund will have a 10-year duration and is expected to invest in at least 14 companies. Its investment policy will include companies that develop hardware, software and data analysis applications focused primarily on applications in strategic areas, such as advanced manufacturing, smart cities, health, and smart agro. The fund will be aligned with the National Internet of Things Plan, a public policy launched in June 2019 to develop the IoT ecosystem in Brazil, and with the new regulation of the Computer Law, which allows investment by electronics manufacturers, of resources encouraged in venture capital funds.
IoT - According to the International Telecommunication Union, Internet of Things consists of a global infrastructure that enables advanced services through the interconnection between things (physical and virtual), based on information and communication technologies (ICT). The study “Internet of Things: An action plan for Brazil”, carried out in 2018 by a consortium led by consultant McKinsey, and sponsored by BNDES and MCTI, indicated as priorities four environments for the development of IoT in Brazil: smart cities , health, rural and industry 4.0; which served as the basis for defining the focus of the current IoT fund. According to the work, the global economic impact of the massification of loT technologies is estimated at up to US$ 11 trillion, overcoming the effects of other technologies such as advanced robotics, cloud computing and even the mobile Internet. In Brazil, it is estimated that the Internet of Things may have a positive impact on the economy of about US$ 200 billion by 2025.
EN 
PT 
