How Latin America Is Redefining Fintech: Uruguay, Nearshoring & the Next Wave of WealthTech

Описание: Discover how Latin America’s fintech ecosystem is evolving from cash-based economies to digital wallets, WealthTech platforms, and nearshore engineering teams powering the next generation of financial products.

Welcome to another episode of The Nearshore Cafe Podcast, hosted by Brian Samson, Founder of 💻 Plugg Technologies, a leading nearshore talent partner connecting U.S. companies with top software engineers across Latin America.

In this episode, Brian sits down with Agustín Guerra, Co-Founder of Vangui, a specialized fintech engineering and consulting firm based in Montevideo, Uruguay. Agustín shares how his global journey from Uruguay to China, Germany, Poland, and the UK shaped his perspective on payments, cross-border finance, and building fintech products for international markets.

You’ll learn how China’s cashless society influenced his thinking, why Uruguay is known as the “Switzerland of Latin America” for its stability and banking environment, and how Latin America’s second wave of fintech is being built on top of existing rails to accelerate innovation in payments, investments, and WealthTech.

The conversation also explores how Vangui helps U.S., UK, and LATAM-based fintechs scale faster by providing engineers who deeply understand payments, banking, KYC, compliance, and financial infrastructure instead of generic dev teams that need months of onboarding.

🎧 Tune in for a founder’s-eye view of how Latin America is becoming a global hub for fintech innovation, nearshore tech talent, and cross-border financial services.

💡 What You’ll Learn

• How a Uruguayan founder built a global fintech career across Asia, Europe, and Latin America
• Why Uruguay’s stability, banking system, and regulations attract fintech founders and investors
• How Latin America shifted from cash to digital wallets and mobile payments
• Why WealthTech and investment apps are the next big wave in the LATAM fintech ecosystem
• The difference between first-wave fintechs (building rails) and second-wave fintechs (building on top of rails)
• How Vangui supports fintech, payments, and WealthTech companies with specialized nearshore engineering teams
• Pros and cons of hiring fintech talent in Uruguay vs. Argentina—time zones, talent density, and culture
• Predictions for Latin America’s fintech growth heading into 2026, including cross-border opportunities

⏱️ Chapters

00:00 – Welcome & Sponsor: Plugg Technologies (Nearshore Tech Talent in LATAM)
01:00 – Agustín’s Global Journey: From Montevideo to Shanghai & Europe
04:30 – Culture Shock & Fintech Lessons from Cashless China
06:30 – How Asian Digital Wallets Inspired a New View of Payments
08:50 – Uruguay as the “Switzerland of Latin America” for Fintech & Banking
11:00 – First Wave vs. Second Wave of Latin American Fintech
13:00 – WealthTech, Investments & Changing Financial Habits in LATAM
16:20 – The Origin Story of Vangui: Fintech-Focused Engineering Partner
18:50 – Scaling Fintech Products with Specialized Nearshore Developers
21:00 – Client Mix: U.S., UK & Latin American Fintech Companies
25:00 – Hiring Fintech Talent in Uruguay and Argentina
27:00 – Infrastructure, Hardware Costs & Doing Business in Uruguay
29:00 – Fintech Trends & Predictions for 2026
30:30 – Travel Guide: How to Enjoy Montevideo & La Rambla Like a Local

🎙️ Host

Brian Samson – Founder, 💻 Plugg Technologies
LinkedIn:   / briansamson  

Website: https://www.plugg.tech

🎙️ Guest

Agustín Guerra – Co-Founder, Vangui
LinkedIn:   / agustinguerra  

🎙️ Sponsored by

Plugg Technologies – Connecting U.S. companies with top-tier software developers and fintech engineers across Latin America.
Website: https://www.plugg.tech

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