Marcos Kantt appointed Habi CFO to spur Latin America growth

Habi, one of the largest real estate technology companies in Latin America, has announced the appointment of Marcos Kantt as its Chief Financial Officer as it continues its expansion across the region’s major urban metropolises and seeks to consolidate its position as a prop-teach leader.

Habi said that its goal is to ‘transform’ Latin America’s traditionally opaque and inefficient residential ecosystem with a data-focused approach and digital platform.

The company aims to unlock access to liquidity and information for hundreds of millions of Latin Americans buying and selling homes in the region, giving them control over their finances, it added.

Core to the firm’s services is its iBuying tool, which leverages its robust and proprietary database, Habi’s pricing model provides valuations, home cash offers and financial products quickly and automatically, saving customers time, and ultimately granting them freedom of movement and access to their wealth. 

The platform has developed its own proprietary MLS and synthesizes everything from location to property size to number of parking spots to whether the building has an elevator.

As CFO, Kantt will be instrumental in supporting Habi’s growth through the development of a full stack of financial service offerings, in partnership with financial institutions.

“We are delighted to have Marcos join our leadership team,” said Habi Co-Founder & CEO Brynne McNulty Rojas. “His extensive experience at world-class financial institutions, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse, advising leading financial services and real estate firms across Latin America positions him perfectly to help drive the next phase of growth, particularly as we broaden our product offerings. 

“It is Habi’s mission to empower Latin Americans in the largest financial decisions of their lives through access to information and liquidity, and we believe that Marcos will enhance our ability to achieve that goal,” she added. 

Kantt’s appointment comes in the wake of Habi announcing the results of its Series B funding round, where the company, led by co-Founders Sebastian Noguera and Rojas, raised $100 million in equity.

The funding round, led by SoftBank Latin America Fund, alongside previous investors including Inspired Capital, Tiger Global, Homebrew and 8VC, represented the largest round raised by a female CEO across Latin America and the second largest Series B raised by a tech company in Colombia. 

The capital raised is propelling Habi forward on its growth strategy into major Latin American markets.

With nearly 20 years of experience, Kantt comes to Habi following a career in investment banking, advising financial institutions and real estate companies in M&A and capital markets’ situations in excess of $130bn in cumulative volume. At Habi, he will oversee traditional functions, including accounting, treasury, finance and investor relations. 

Additionally, Kantt will spearhead corporate development and business strategy to further expand on the firm’s embedded finance offerings.

“After almost two decades in the financial services industry, I am excited to jump into the tech sector and join Habi at this critical time,” said Kantt. “Habi was born out of a desire to make our residential real estate markets more transparent and efficient, and it’s a vision that resonates with me deeply.”

Habi aims to become the largest ibuyer in Latin America, representing a significant percentage of real estate transactions in Mexico and Colombia. The company now has more than 950 employees and operates in more than 10 cities, with a total estimated population exceeding 40 million.