Politics, Business & Culture in the Americas
jenkins

How a Tennessee Farm Boy Cashed In on the Mexican Revolution

This article is adapted from AQ’s print issue on peace and economic opportunity in Colombia Few stories better illustrate Mexico’s deep-rooted inequalities — and the broken legacy of its century-old constitution — than the giddy career of William O. Jenkins. In 1901, this Tennessee farm boy placed his bets on Mexico. Shortly before crossing the Rio Grande, he had … Read more

alemao

Craft Beer Thrives in a Rio de Janeiro Favela

The bar is small, housed in a converted garage near an entrance to the vast Complexo do Alemão favelas in Rio de Janeiro’s north side. But step inside, and big ambitions are on display: 120 types of beer from places as distant as Belgium line the wall. Despite its outsized aspirations, Bistrô Estação R&R is … Read more

doria top

How a New Program Is Cutting the ‘Brazil Cost’ for Entrepreneurs

Marcelo Sasso worked in the finance department of a São Paulo advertising firm, and was good at his job. So good, in fact, that friends and acquaintances often came to him for advice. This raised a question: Why not start his own financial administration and consulting company? For starters, the risks were daunting. The country … Read more

panamacity

Investment Funds See Promise in Latin America

The launch of two Latin America-focused investment funds less than 48 hours apart — Rokk3r Labs’ Rokk3r Fuel and 500 Startups’ Luchadores II — in March made clear that a recent boom in investment in the region is not a passing trend, but robust growth built on a solid base. Last year, the number of … Read more

womentech

Women Are Changing the Face of Tech in Brazil

Camila Achutti grew up fascinated by code. Her father was a programmer and as a kid she’d listen intently as he dictated lines of COBOL, an English-like programming language, by phone. “It was this language that only select people spoke,” says the 25-year-old tech entrepreneur from São Paulo. “I wanted to be part of that … Read more

AQ

AQ Event in Miami: Latin America’s Young Entrepreneurs

Tune in tonight at 6pm ET for the live webcast. Eighty-nine percent of young people in Latin America say they hope to one day start a business – the highest rate in the world. But too often, barriers to success – from gender discrimination to a lack of willing investors – prevent the region’s aspiring … Read more

Nubank

Startups from Brazil to Mexico Are Giving Banks a Run for Their Money

For Latin Americans accustomed to red tape, it can seem like a godsend – instead of waiting in line, a swipe on a smart phone; instead of piles of paperwork, a text message or two. Over the last several years, financial technology has changed the way that consumers from Mexico to Brazil save and spend … Read more

rutan

Medellín Proves Investing In Science Is a Good Bet for Cities

In the early 2000s, Medellín struggled to overcome high unemployment, inequality, and a lack of infrastructure and services in its poorest areas. The city needed not just incremental but radical change in order to tackle these challenges and succeed in an ever more competitive global context. To accomplish this, the city’s academics, businesspeople and civic … Read more

Cover

Introducing AQ’s Top 5 Young Entrepreneurs in Latin America

The world’s strongest entrepreneurial culture can be found in Latin America. That may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s actually true. A whopping 89 percent of Latin American youths say they want to work for themselves, or start and grow a business, according to a global survey of 5,000 youths commissioned by the Citi Foundation. … Read more

women

Claves del éxito para mujeres emprendedoras

Read in English Desde la importancia de conseguir un buen mentor hasta la ventaja de usar nuevas tecnologías, hay muchas cosas que las mujeres en Latinoamérica pueden hacer para lanzar sus propios negocios y llevarlos al éxito. Le pedimos consejos a algunas de las más destacadas emprendedoras de la región. Libera el poder de mentores … Read more

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