Capim, a startup offering Brazilians the option to buy now, pay later (BNPL) for dental services, has raised $26.7 million in Series A funding, it tells TechCrunch exclusively.
Founded in July 2021 by Marcelo Lutz and Roberto Biselli, who serve as co-CEOs, São Paulo-based Capim describes itself as a vertical SaaS company specializing in the dental sector. It claims that its operating system helps dentists digitize and manage their clinics, and increase revenue.
One of the things Capim’s software does, for example, is help patients book appointments digitally at connected clinics. On the BNPL front, the company says this offering is less expensive than an alternative like a credit card.
“Unlike the common practice in Brazil of paying in installments with credit cards — which requires both a credit card limit and the ability to pay within a limited number of installments — typically up to six or 12 — our solution offers greater flexibility, allowing payments of up to 36 installments,” Biselli told TechCrunch. He claims that the interest rates that Capim charges are 50% lower than those charged by traditional banks.
Now with its latest capital infusion, Capim plans to expand its financial offerings with a POS (point-of-sale) terminal that will offer clinics significantly lower merchant discount rates (MDR) while also integrating with its SaaS financial management module. A merchant discount rate (MDR) is a fee charged to a business by the company that processes its debit and credit card transactions. The terminal will allow clinics to accept credit cards, debit cards, and PIX (Brazil’s real-time payment system).
The capital will also go toward the development of what the company describes as new AI-powered tools designed to make clinical operations more efficient. The startup also plans to accelerate its go-to-market strategy to expand its network of clinics and patients.
Capim’s Series A round was raised in two tranches. Valor Capital and QED Investors co-led the financing, which included participation from existing investors ONEVC, Canary, and NXTP, as well as new investors Endeavor, Saison, and Actyus, a fund led by Creditas CEO Sergio Furio. The startup declined to disclose its valuation. In total it has raised about $29 million, including a $2.5 million seed round when it first launched in July of 2021.
Lutz and Biselli met while working on their MBAs at INSEAD, where they won the INSEAD Venture Competition in December 2020. After running a successful pilot in early 2021, they officially launched Capim upon completing their degrees.
Expanding access
To date, the startup says it has helped more than 60,000 Brazilians gain access to dental procedures.
While the company declined to disclose hard revenue figures, Lutz said it tripled its revenue in 2024, while adding more than 4,000 clinics to its client base. It currently serves 6,000 dental clinics and expects to reach over 10,000 by year’s end. Capim is not yet profitable but it did “break even” at the end of last year, the co-founders say.
Capim makes money in two ways: via SaaS subscriptions, which provide clinics with digital tools to manage their operations, as well as the financial products, which it says helps clinics increase patient accessibility and thus, drive more revenue.
Presently, Capim has 130 employees, up from 115 a year ago.
Valor Capital’s Carlos Costa said his firm was drawn to invest in Capim because the startup “addresses clear challenges faced by professionals in managing their clinics and in financing and paying for treatments.”
QED Investors’ Mike Packer said his firm has been following Capim since its early days.
“After watching how quickly the company scaled up with strong unit economics, we were quite convinced of early product market fit and saw that early traction as only the beginning,” he told TechCrunch.
