Under the slogan “Distribution is the new moat,” Nomada Fund launches as the world’s first New Media fund

Miami, 19 October 2026. Nomada Fund announced its launch as the world’s first New Media fund. Rather than providing capital, the fund invests Media Credits through a program of sustained visibility and coverage across more than 10 New Media platforms, including newsletters, podcasts, communities, events, SEO and GEO, reaching Latin America and the United States.

The firm is backed by ILB Media Group, a conglomerate specializing in New Media that brings together more than 20 financial and investment media outlets in the United States and Latin America. This partnership allows Nomada Fund to offer portfolio startups a sustained presence among investors, founders and potential customers from their earliest stages.

The model is based on a proven mechanism

Nomada Fund uses the same financial structure as Media for Equity (M4E) funds , in which media groups contribute advertising space in exchange for equity in growing companies. The difference lies in two key aspects: instead of television, radio or print, Nomada Fund operates on New Media platforms, where trust and brand discovery are built today; and instead of coming in when a company is already mature, it participates from the earliest stages (Pre-seed and Seed). In practical terms, Nomada Fund is therefore the world’s first Distribution for Equity (D4E) fund.

The offering responds to a shift in how companies are built. With AI agents, APIs and no-code tools, a small team can recreate a functional product in a matter of days. What a competitor cannot copy in that time is the trust of people who follow a company, open its emails and recommend its work.

This is where the firm’s guiding slogan comes from: “Distribution is the new moat”. In the financial world, a moat or defensive moat is what protects a company from its competitors. For years, that moat was technology. Today, according to Nomada Fund, it is the ability to reach the right people and turn that visibility into trust, reputation and lasting relationships. 

“A startup’s most valuable asset is no longer just its product, but its brand and its relationship with people,” said Jose Kont. “Having lots of followers guarantees nothing. A small community that responds, tries products and recommends a brand may be worth far more than a massive audience that barely sees the posts.”

A team built from within the ecosystem

Jose Kont takes on the role of Founder and Managing Partner of the firm. With more than 20 years of experience, he is a renowned New Media expert and a partner at ecosystem-building firms such as Impacta VC in Chile, CAFI in Central America and Cuantico VP in the United States.

Israel García Ballesteros, Co-founder and Venture Partner at Nomada Fund, is the CEO and founder of Startuplinks, the leading Spanish-speaking community of venture capital funds and accelerators, with more than 270 institutional members from across the region.

Rounding out the team as Venture Partners are Rodrigo Giacaman, founder of Startups Latam; Ileana Figueroa, CEO of Pulso Capital; Luca Modyeievsky, CEO and Founder of The Startup Journal; and Jose Manuel Aguirre, founder of TECHLA. As a result, several of the most relevant media outlets and communities in the Latin American entrepreneurial ecosystem are directly part of the firm. On the legal front, Eugenia di Marco joins as an advisor and partner; she is an international legal advisor with training at UC Berkeley School of Law and MIT, among other institutions.

From rented reach to owned channels

The data supports the firm’s approach. The Rival IQ 2026 Social Media Industry Benchmark Report puts brands’ average Instagram engagement rate at 0,30 % of followers, down from 0,36 % the previous year. Because this attention depends on platforms and algorithms a company does not control, Nomada Fund helps startups move it to owned channels, such as newsletters, communities, events and direct conversations with potential customers or investors.

“When anyone can build software in a weekend, the winner is the one who reaches the right people first,” the firm said. 

About Nomada Fund

Nomada Fund is the world’s first New Media fund and a pioneer of the Distribution for Equity (D4E) model. It invests sustained visibility and positioning across more than 10 New Media platforms in exchange for equity in early-stage startups with proven traction in Latin America and the United States.

 More information at https://nomadafund.com