Spain and Argentina remain smaller startup markets despite new funding gains

Crunchbase data show startup funding in Spain and Argentina is running ahead of last year, though both markets remain small compared with larger venture hubs. Spain has raised less than $2 billion across stages so far in 2026, while Argentina’s total has already topped its 2025 level, according to Crunchbase.

The comparison comes as Argentina and Spain head into Sunday’s World Cup final, but the venture readout is less evenly matched. Spain’s total is roughly one-third of France’s funding over the same period, according to Crunchbase, while Argentina remains behind Brazil and Mexico, the two most populous Latin American countries and frequent leaders in regional startup investment.

Argentina’s venture market is still fintech-heavy

Argentina’s startup market has tended to produce annual venture totals in the low hundreds of millions of dollars, according to Crunchbase. Those totals can swing sharply when one or two large rounds appear or disappear from a given year.

The country’s best-known startup outcome remains MercadoLibre, the online marketplace founded in Argentina that now has a market capitalization of about $94 billion on Nasdaq. The company is currently headquartered in Uruguay, but traces its origins to Buenos Aires.

Recent funding activity is concentrated in financial technology. Buenos Aires-based Ualá has raised $1.1 billion in known funding to date, according to Crunchbase, including a $195 million financing in March. The company’s revenue, current valuation and headcount were not disclosed in the data cited.

Other sizable Argentine rounds this year also sit in payments infrastructure. Pomelo raised a $55 million Series C co-led by Kaszek and Insight Partners. Tapi, which provides payments and collections infrastructure, secured $27 million in Series B funding in February.

Spain’s largest rounds skew toward space and AI-labeled software

Spain is the larger funding market of the two in absolute dollars, but still trails Europe’s top startup economies. Crunchbase data show Spanish startups have raised less than $2 billion so far in 2026. Annual funding in recent years has ranged from $1.8 billion to $2.8 billion.

The largest disclosed Spanish round this year went to PLD Space, which raised a $206 million Series C in March. The company describes its goal as becoming a global space transportation provider for cargo and human missions to the Moon and Mars, a capital-intensive ambition in a category where timelines and technical risk are material.

Barcelona-based Factorial, described as an AI-enabled HR and payroll platform, raised $150 million in Series D funding in June at a $2.5 billion valuation. Crunchbase says the company has raised more than $350 million in equity funding to date. The data did not include revenue or profitability metrics, leaving the valuation multiple unclear.

Madrid-based EOS-X Space, which focuses on near-space infrastructure, space tourism and aerospace data, raised $140 million in Series D funding in May. Another Madrid company, Xoople, raised $130 million in Series B funding in April for AI tools used to analyze geospatial data.

The data point to improving funding totals in both countries, but not a break from the broader pattern of capital concentration. Crunchbase has reported that the current AI-led funding cycle has pushed more money toward Silicon Valley and other leading venture centers, leaving secondary markets dependent on fewer large rounds to change annual totals.

This story draws on original reporting from Crunchbase News.