LatAm Secondaries
ENESPT

Latin America · Venture & private equity

The secondaries market in Latin America

A regional guide to secondary transactions across Latin America's venture capital and private equity landscape — where founders, early employees, and fund investors go to understand liquidity options before an IPO or acquisition.

Explore Brazil →Explore Mexico
São Paulo skyline, Latin America's largest financial centre
$240B2025 global secondary volume, +48% YoY
$106BUS venture secondaries in 2025
2Lead regional markets: Brazil & Mexico

Global figures: Jefferies 2025 review. See the deal tracker →

Watch · secondaries explained

Curated from leading investors and educators

Insights Into the Secondaries Market

Prof. Claudia Zeisberger · 10.7K views

Private Equity Secondaries 101

The Wall Street Skinny · 7.1K views

Introduction to Private Equity Secondaries

Coller Capital · 3.0K views

Why secondaries matter in Latin America right now

Latin America's startup ecosystem has matured to the point where early investors and employees at the region's most successful companies are years into their hold periods with no exit in sight. Secondary transactions — selling existing shares or fund interests to another investor — have become the practical way to unlock liquidity without waiting for an IPO or acquisition.

Dedicated regional vehicles like the Activa-Fen Ventures secondaries fund and Attom are already active, and Brazil's first formal study of its startup secondaries market landed in 2025. This is an early, fast-moving category — most of what has been written about it so far comes from trade press and fund marketing, not an independent guide built for investors and allocators.

Office tower on Avenida Paulista, São Paulo's financial corridor

Country coverage

Country

Brazil

The largest and most active secondaries market in the region, with the first dedicated market study published in 2025.

Country

Mexico

A blue-ocean opportunity — Mexico passed Brazil in quarterly VC funding, with a secondaries market still taking shape.

Secondaries in the news

View all news →

Who's selling, who's buying, and at what valuation — a running feed of the biggest secondary share sales, tender offers, and pre-IPO deals across tech. Updated every week.

New to secondaries?

Start with Secondaries Explained for a plain-language walkthrough of how secondary transactions work, then come back here for Latin America-specific coverage. For regional coverage beyond Latin America, see Angel Secondaries and APAC Secondaries.

Frequently asked questions

What are secondaries in venture capital and private equity?
A secondary transaction is the sale of an existing stake in a private company — startup shares, a venture capital fund interest, or a private equity fund position — from one investor to another, rather than the company issuing new stock. In Latin America, secondaries let early employees, founders, and early-stage investors get liquidity before an IPO or acquisition.
Is there an active secondaries market in Latin America?
Yes, and it is accelerating. Regional funds such as Activa-Fen Ventures and Attom have launched dedicated secondaries vehicles, and Brazil produced its first dedicated market study in 2025 (Spectra/Beacon). Brazil and Mexico are the two largest and most active markets today.
How is a venture capital secondary different from a private equity secondary?
Venture capital secondaries typically involve stakes in earlier-stage, higher-growth private companies or VC fund interests, while private equity secondaries usually involve stakes in more mature buyout funds or portfolio companies. Both give existing investors a way to exit before a fund's natural life cycle ends.
Can I buy pre-IPO shares in companies like SpaceX, OpenAI, or Anthropic through a secondary transaction?
Access to well-known pre-IPO names is a form of secondary transaction, typically brokered through specialized platforms or funds that hold existing shareholder positions. Availability, pricing, and investor eligibility vary by company and jurisdiction, so always verify terms directly with a licensed platform before committing capital.