'Entrepreneurship opportunities for Expats in Uruguay' Business

Entrepreneurship opportunities for Expats in Uruguay

Have you ever been to Uruguay before? What has made you decide that this is the place for you? It is indeed a tranquil place, it seems ideal for retirees, however it is not perfect and have many flaws. If you have not spend a few months here I would STRONGLY suggest you do so before choosing to relocate here permanently.

As for investing...I would further suggest you have lived here at least a year if not more before investing. Uruguay's culture continues to play an important role in business here. It is not corrupt, but VERY bureaucratic. You have to speak proficient if not fluent Spanish, you have to have the right contacts (and keep them on your good side), you have to understand the people (and therefore your market). There is a lot to be taken in to consideration, and businesses fail here regularly.

• Starting Business in Uruguay

Uruguay is a great platform to do business from: a web based business of any type that physical location doesn't matter, contract technical work, consulting that can be done online and by phone, etc.

But doing business inside the country? Gads! Do some research.

There's so much in writing about this and it seems no one is taking the time to find the data?

I know your website/blog well and think you have written about many interesting and helpful topics, but if you're referring to a specific article(s) that you have written about business, entrepreneurs, Uruguayan domestic market etc, it would be helpful if you would provide a direct link to that page rather than your main page.

This note goes for everyone with a blog/website. In your member profile there is a place to list your homepages for people to see. However if you refer to a specific topic in a forum discussion please ensure that the link you provide is directly relevant. Thank you.

However Jerich you said you just want to invest down here, so that doesn't have to mean starting a business. I know people who have invested in large scale successful agri companies such as forestry, fruit plantations, and the famous beef industry. There are also real estate opportunities, and some people have said that government bonds give them a nice little return every year.

Whatever you plan to do...I think it is wise to spend some time here (at least a few months LIVING, not traveling) and THEN decide if Uruguay is for you. Only after you know the country, understand a bit more about the culture and the government etc would I suggest putting your money here.

I'd agree with all you say Elaine.

The rural sectors of the ROU economy are vital to the nations economic survival so they tend to be the least meddled-with by government and bureaucracy. I'm retired but I do small scale arable farming here and find the biz to be MUCH less regulated than in Europe and about the same as Thailand.

Having said that, we have to face world commodity price fluctuations, northern tariff barriers and are at the mercy of the weather. Its just a matter of opinion whether that's better or worse than facing the massed ROU funcionarios :-)

thanks

The very best of luck to you :-)

Patrick

There are of course other ways of investing in the ROU without starting or running a business. The gov and the Central Bank issue bonds in US dollars as well as UI (inflation linked) peso bonds currently paying about 4% plus capital appreciation in line with inflation. I don't know if they are still on offer but last December I made a 1 year loan to the Central Bank in ordinary non-indexed pesos at 12%.

Now probably isn't the best time to be buying pesos as they seem over-expensive to me but if you live here you'll need pesos so a peso income is a handy thing to have.

My broker (Diego Rodríguez) speaks good English, knows the local market and works for reasonable fees. His email is diegorod at gbengochea.com.uy and his company GASTON BENGOCHEA Y CIA. Tell him that Patrick McDonnell sent you :-)

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