Ecuador's first unicorn raised $84M from SoftBank to be the Stripe of Latin America—then cut 60% of its workforce in 2023 as the LatAm fintech funding winter arrived.
Evaluating only Kushki’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Unit economics as the #1 likely cause. Documented cause: Market collapse.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
Kushki founded in Quito by Aron Schwarzkopf and Sebastián Castro as a payment processing infrastructure company for Latin America.
FUNDING
Kushki raised $84M in Series A from SoftBank's Latin America Fund, achieving unicorn status at $1.5B valuation as Ecuador's first unicorn.
SHUTDOWN
Kushki collapsed from unicorn ambitions to insolvency within 18 months of Series A, unable to sustain operations amid investor portfolio markdowns.
DOWN ROUND
SoftBank's Latin America Fund shifted strategy and marked down its LatAm portfolio aggressively, signaling loss of confidence in Kushki's valuation.
LAYOFF
Kushki conducted multiple rounds of layoffs in late 2023, eliminating approximately 60% of its 600-person workforce as the company shifted to survival-mode restructuring.
Full Analysis
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Documented cause
Kushki was founded in Quito in 2017 by Aron Schwarzkopf and Sebastián Castro as a payment processing infrastructure company for Latin America. The company raised $84M in a 2022 Series A from SoftBank's Latin America Fund, becoming Ecuador's first unicorn at a reported $1.5B valuation. The company processed billions in payment volume across Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Chile. However, SoftBank's Latin America Fund shifted strategy in 2023 after marking down its LatAm portfolio aggressively. Kushki conducted multiple rounds of layoffs in late 2023, eliminating approximately 60% of its 600-person workforce. The company went from unicorn ambitions to survival-mode restructuring in under 18 months.
Lesson
“If your primary investor is a late-stage growth fund, model three scenarios before Series B: (1) fund continues investing, (2) fund stops but market exists, (3) fund stops and market corrects. Only proceed if scenario 3 still gives 18 months of runway at 50% of current headcount.”