← Embedded Finance Index 2026

Jelou

“Can WhatsApp become the universal operating system for financial transactions in Latin America, with Jelou as the no-code infrastructure layer connecting AI agents to payments, KYC, and banking cores?”

Founded2017
HQGuayaquil, Ecuador (legal) / New York, United States (commercial)
Total raised$15.6M
Latest roundSeries A, January 2026
IndustryVertical SaaS / Conversational AI & Embedded Finance (LATAM)
The story

Founded in 2017 as a WhatsApp chatbot and virtual assistant platform for LATAM businesses, Jelou evolved from a messaging middleware provider into a full transactional AI platform. Around 2023, the company pivoted sharply toward embedded finance — adding in-chat payments, KYC, and e-signatures — positioning WhatsApp as the primary channel for financial transactions in Latin America. The 2026 Series A, backed by Credicorp's CVC arm (Krealo), signals a deliberate move upmarket into regulated financial services, with Brain OS serving as the no-code infrastructure layer connecting banking cores, payment processors, and identity providers inside a single conversation.

Last 12 months
2026-01
2026-01
Product timeline
2017
Founded in Guayaquil, Ecuador as a chatbot/virtual assistant platform for businesses operating on WhatsApp and social channels.· pivot
2021
Launched multi-agent panel, ChatApp Builder (no-code/low-code), and Datum data storage component, expanding platform capabilities.· banking
2023
Introduced in-chat payment processing, KYC identity verification, and e-signature tools, shifting toward transactional AI on WhatsApp.· card
2024
Launched Brain Studio, a no-code AI agent builder integrating LLMs (GPT, Claude, Llama) for enterprise automation workflows.· pivot
2025
Launched MCP (Model Context Protocol) server enabling 117 tools and 15 widgets accessible from ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, and other AI clients.· pivot
2026
Closed $10M Series A led by Wellington Access Ventures with Krealo (Credicorp) and Collide Capital to expand Brain OS and LATAM fintech integrations.· ipo
Regulated entities
2
regulatory licences held by Jelou
Licence types, jurisdictions and registered entities are in the Embedded Finance Index report.
The stack
2 layers disclosed in Jelou’s embedded-finance stack
Payments / PSP
StripeMercado PagoPayPhoneDeunaNuveiDatafastPlacetopayNiubizCulqi
Accounting
in the full report
Accounting gap: minor
3 more providers across 1 layer, with confidence-scored evidence and source URLs, are in the Embedded Finance Index report.