Proptech startup Yuca breaks into São Paulo co-living market

Co-Living has been gaining traction all over the globe, especially in US cities where rental rates are skyrocketing.

But in countries like Brazil, these types of spaces are not common for a number of reasons. (Historically, most people have lived at home with their parents until they marry, for example.) However, as the Latin American country’s society evolves, the real estate scene is attempting to keep up. One proptech startup is hoping to help bring the country up to date in terms of its apartment offerings.

As part of that goal, São Paulo-based Yuca has raised a $4.7 million pre-seed round led by Brazil’s Monashees. ONEVC, a cross-border firm with offices in São Paulo and San Francisco, also participated in the round in addition to Creditas, Starwood Capital Group Founder Barry Sternlicht, DST Global Managing Partner Saurabh Gupta and GGV Capital Partner Hans Tung. (It’s important to note that $4.7 million is an unusually large amount for a pre-seed round anywhere, but especially in Brazil, despite having seen a surge in venture funding in recent years.)

Yuca Co-Founder and CEO Eduardo Campos talked about his company, explaining more about what the startup is doing exactly. He also helped shed some light on how Yuca fits into an evolving narrative of how São Paulo’s core is being impacted by the growth of its startup scene.

Background

Campos was born in the Northeastern Brazil city of Recife, Pernambuco, before moving to the U.S. when he was 14 years old. His first experience with the venture world was when he helped set up a small VC practice with a family office in São Paulo in 2012.

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