Celero Secures US$ 2.9M Series A led by Headline & Visa to Expand Fintech Infrastructure

Celero, a Brazilian startup focused on data infrastructure for businesses, has raised US$ 2.9 million in an ongoing Series A round led by Headline with participation from Visa. The investment will support the company’s strategy to expand its data infrastructure solutions for financial institutions in Brazil and other Latin American markets while strengthening its commercial partnership with the payments company.

Building a data infrastructure layer for financial services

Founded in 2016, Celero operates as a data infrastructure layer that connects systems, organizes financial information, and enables more efficient operations for financial institutions, fintechs, and service providers.

The platform focuses on transforming transactional data into actionable management insights, addressing a structural challenge faced by many small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in the region.

A shift in strategy toward financial institutions

In its early years, Celero initially targeted SMEs directly with financial management tools. However, the company later pivoted its strategy to provide its technology to financial institutions instead.

According to João Tosin, the decision was driven by the behavior of entrepreneurs in Latin America. Rather than attempting to introduce new financial management tools, Celero chose to integrate its infrastructure into platforms that entrepreneurs already use, such as internet banking.

This approach reflects a structural difference between Latin America and more mature markets. While the use of financial management software is common in regions such as Europe and the United States, adoption remains low in the region. In Brazil, only about 5% to 6% of SMEs use financial management software, and that figure drops to around 4% across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Celero differentiates itself by using artificial intelligence and data enrichment processes to generate reliable business insights directly from companies’ financial transaction flows. This means the platform does not rely on manual inputs or previously organized financial records from entrepreneurs.

Scaling data infrastructure for SMEs

The company currently processes and categorizes more than R$1 billion in transactions per month and has multiplied its revenue by five over the past two years.

Celero’s ecosystem includes partnerships with major institutions such as Caixa, Visa, Sicredi, and Serasa Experian.

For the company’s leadership, the new funding reflects the maturity of the model developed over the past few years.

“We solved a structural problem: the lack of reliable information about SMEs,” said Tosin. “Today we can transform transactional data into high-quality management insights without requiring any manual input from entrepreneurs, which fundamentally changes how financial institutions interact with this segment.”

Expansion and product development

With the new capital, Celero plans to accelerate technological development, expand integrations, and build new data-driven products powered by artificial intelligence.

The goal is to give financial institutions deeper visibility into the behavior, performance, and financial health of SMEs within their portfolios. By improving access to structured data, the company aims to enable more accurate credit products and financial services tailored to the realities of small businesses.

Visa partnership expands globally

The participation of Visa in the round goes beyond financial investment. The companies began collaborating in 2021, formalized the partnership in 2022, and have now expanded the agreement to a global scope.

According to Nuno Lopes Alves, the partnership aims to scale Celero’s solutions across markets where Visa already operates.

“By activating data, Celero helps financial institutions offer more accessible and reliable services to millions of businesses,” he said. “Together, we can accelerate digital and financial inclusion across the region.”