For two decades, Latin America took advantage of the demographic dividend of its young and growing population. As growth slows and that population ages, investors are turning their attention to opportunities in the region’s “silver economy.”
“Older adults everywhere face barriers, like confidence and usability, but in Latin America, those challenges get amplified by regional realities,” says María Andrea Orduz of Región Plateada, an accelerator program for startups removing barriers to services for older adults across Latin America and the Caribbean
By 2050, more than one-quarter of the region’s population will be over the age of 60, according to the Inter-American Development Bank.
To find solutions for healthy aging, Región Plateada, or “silver region” in English was launched by IDB Lab, the venture sleeve of the Inter-American Development Bank, along with Colombia-based Fundación Arturo Crespo Sesana. Selected ventures will receive up to $100,000 in funding, along with tailored technical support. Applications for the accelerators’ second cohort are now open.
The accelerator’s first cohort included Chile-based HoraSalud which helps older adults book and cancel medical appointments remotely, sends reminders to reduce no-shows, and moves them up in clinic queues. Mistatas, also in Chile, built an emergency alert system that detects falls and connects users to their support network in under 20 seconds.
In Colombia, Glia monitors chronic conditions through a modem installed in the home—no smartphone required. The company connects to medical devices and uses WhatsApp to keep the interface simple.
“Care systems are being stretched. If you help older adults access services and prevent dependency, you can improve quality of life and reduce long-term costs for families, health systems and governments,” Orduz tells ImpactAlpha.
“The most effective entrepreneurs are not just digitizing services. They’re removing friction and redesigning delivery around how older adults are actually living.”
Catalytic capital
Orduz will speak at New Ventures’ Latin American Impact Investing Forum, or FLII, which runs February 24–26 in Mérida, Mexico. The silver economy is one of five topics in the conference’s “Unlocking Humanity” track. Other speakers on her panel include New Ventures’ Carolina Puerta and IDB Lab’s Isabela Echeverry.
“It’s rare to see the silver economy addressed in impact investing circles,” said Peter Kaldes of Next50, a Denver-based foundation focused on “valuing aging.” Next50 has developed an aging investment framework to help catalyze capital for solutions that improve the economic mobility of older adults. He commended IDB Lab for deploying such capital in advance of a crisis.
“There’s a useful irony here,” Kaldes said. “Latin America is aging fast but still has time and they’re using it. The U.S. is further along demographically yet behind on capital deployment.”
Older adults face gaps in access to modern services everywhere in the world, from basic smartphone use, access to digital platforms, or a simple lack of trust in non-human services. In Latin America, these challenges are compounded by an economy that still runs largely on cash.
“There’s an access multiplier,” explains Orduz. “It’s not just about digital literacy. It’s about design trust and access to financial products, and yeah, how older adults are also valuable clients and not risk exceptions.”
This gap has opened the door to a growing pipeline of startups focused on care and inclusion technologies for older adults across the region, and investors are beginning to take notice.
As Orduz puts it “The silver economy is moving from being seen as a social issue into being treated as a real market category, “With early signs of “more scale plays and consolidation” emerging globally.
In Colombia, digital lender KOA merged with ExcelCredit last month to expand lending to pensioners. The consolidated platform allows customers to take out loans which will be repaid through their monthly pension, simplifying the application process and reducing barriers for older borrowers.
Orduz sees potential for distribution through existing channels — insurers, employers, and other actors to accelerate this growth.
“What we want is to make them conscious about their role in the silver ecosystem,” she said. The goal is building scalable platforms that can expand across services and countries while maintaining quality.
Most investment so far has come in the form of blended finance and philanthropy, with limited participation from private investors. To help close that gap, New Ventures and IDB Lab are partnering to launch a new initiative aimed at building investor understanding and crowding in capital. “I’m sure that can lead to new venture capital opportunities,” Orduz added.
Latin America Impact Investing Forum
More than 1,000 LPs, GPs, entrepreneurs, and ecosystem builders are expected in Mérida.
The FLII, now in its 16th year, runs February 24–26 under the theme “Unlocking the Impossible.” The agenda spans sustainable cities, digital inclusion, artificial intelligence, climate tech, and biodiversity, reflecting the breadth of the region’s impact investing ecosystem.
Speakers this year include representatives from Pro Mujer, Latimpacto, Fundación Coppel, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship, Santander, the City of Boulder, SVX Mexico, Accesso, Climate Policy Initiative, Blue like an Orange, and CO_Capital, among others.Readers can use IMPACTALPHA30 for a 30% discount.