In Latin America, 99% of businesses are micro, small and medium-sized. In Latin America and the Caribbean alone, these SMEs generate nearly 60% of formal employment. They are the lifeblood of our economies and also a reflection of our way of understanding entrepreneurship: often not as a luxury, but as an act of survival and resilience.
For almost a decade I had the privilege of leading one of the most representative international awards for technological entrepreneurship with social impact, a bridge between Europe and Latin America that sought projects capable of responding to major global challenges. From that experience I learned something essential: the Hispanic talent is there, the solutions exist, and what’s missing are the right conditions for them to flourish.
In Europe, entrepreneurs find public programs, mentor networks and access to venture capital. In much of Latin America, however, creativity finds its way through structural obstacles. However, within a few years, Latin American projects begin to catch up with European ones. Although the statistics remain unfavorable – only 45% of Latin American micro-SMEs survive more than two years, compared to 80% of European companies – more and more are managing to consolidate.
I am Chilean and have been out of my country for almost twenty years. I have a deep affection for my homeland, as well as for many other Hispanic countries that I have had the opportunity to get to know. They all share a defining characteristic: resilience. Faced with earthquakes, political crises or inequalities, we fall and get back up. That same brand of identity is in entrepreneurs, because entrepreneurship isn’t just a business: it’s a lifestyle. I have seen Mexican entrepreneurs who turn an idea into a product in a few days; to Colombians who became design experts without having attended school; to Argentinians reinventing business models amid uncertainty; to Chileans who, starting from scarcity, build global solutions. That mix of ingenuity, urgency and creativity is a competitive advantage we don’t always recognize.
A maturing ecosystem
The landscape is changing. Today there are approximately 26 Hispanic unicorns (including Spain), many born in Latin American countries:
• Mexico: Fintech Clara reached a valuation of over $1 billion; Clip, which specializes in digital payments, raised more than 100 million in the latest round.
• Argentina: Fintech leader Ualá was valued at $2.75 billion.
• Colombia: the super app Rappi maintains a valuation of over 5 billion and is preparing to go public.
• Chile: NotCo put food innovation on the global map, surpassing $1.5 billion.
At the same time, Hispanic SMEs continue to be the backbone of our economies. From small businesses to family businesses, they represent between 25 and 30% of the regional GDP and are the main source of employment for millions of people. Their impact is not just economic: they are spaces where the culture, identity and community values that unite us are preserved.
The role of the female entrepreneur
A key aspect that is often overlooked is the impact of female entrepreneurship. Latin America is one of the regions with the highest rate of female entrepreneurs in the world. Many of them start a business not out of opportunity, but out of necessity: to support their children, raise a home, find financial independence. But they do it with a transformative force that is changing the social fabric. Behind every female enterprise there is a story of courage and also an engine of social mobility for an entire community.
Digitization: a window that opens
Another accelerating phenomenon was digitalisation. E-commerce, digital payments, online education, and access to technology tools have leveled the playing field. Today an entrepreneur from Lima, Medellín or Mexico City can sell to the world from their phone. AI is also democratizing previously unthinkable capabilities: data analysis, design, automation, real-time business strategies. Technology is no longer a luxury and is becoming an essential ally.
Entrepreneurship in life
Not every entrepreneur aspires to become a unicorn or collect million-dollar hits. There is another, quieter, but equally valuable way of entrepreneurship that supports our communities. It is entrepreneurship that is born close to home: the small family business, the neighborhood shop, the laboratory, the person who transforms a profession into a stable source of income.
This life undertaking does not only generate work: it creates social fabric, fuels the local economy, preserves traditions and offers a support network where the State does not always reach. Our essence is reflected in it: the ability to reinvent ourselves again and again, to open a door even when all seem to close. It is believing and creating, especially when states do not arrive or opportunities are scarce.
Challenges and opportunities: Toward a Hispanic agenda
The challenges persist: lack of upfront financing, need for technological training, greater regional integration, public policies that accompany and not hinder. But our greatest advantage is intangible: the ability to transform adversity into opportunities, to find solutions where others see only problems.
The Hispanic world must take a further step: build a true corridor of Hispanic entrepreneurship, connecting Spain with Latin America, which articulates investments, talents, networks of mentors and technological platforms. We have the ingredients: market, talent, common culture and creativity. We must make the strategic decision to think as a region and not as isolated countries.
An entrepreneur never gives up. And not even Latin America. We are a continent of talents, with a shared language and creativity that the world has not yet fully discovered.
The future also speaks Spanish. And the time has come to create a united voice for the world.
