Raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, until the age of ten, Laura Moreno Lucas learned early on that hard work wasn’t optional — it was essential. “The message, at least from my family, was always work, work, work, work, work,” she recalls. “There was a focus on education, but more work than education.”
After immigrating to the U.S., that mindset intensified even further. Her parents, like many immigrants, emphasized hustle over higher education. “It wasn’t like, ‘Hey, here’s what you need to do,’ because my parents didn’t have that,” she says. “It was more just really working, and work would then elevate you.”
That work-first mentality would shape her career trajectory and fuel her mission to empower Latina founders to access capital, scale companies, and lead in an economy that has historically excluded them. Through her roles as a venture capitalist, author, advisor, and founder of platforms like Libra Leaders – an effort that is tipping the scales of capital towards women – Lucas’s crusade is not solely focused on helping Latinas participate significantly in the venture space; it is actively rewriting the rules.
A Pivotal Decision
Lucas’s storied career began with a choice not to pursue law school upon graduating from California State University, opting for a job at a San Diego broker-dealer. Her role in that entry-level position might have seemed minor, but it changed everything. “That was the moment that changed me. I was just heads down working, but realized that there were people out there making millions and billions by participating in the financial system, one I had no understanding of growing up.”
Determined to unravel the secrets of this foreign system, she obtained her FINRA licenses, worked tirelessly, and by her early twenties, was closing billion-dollar deals at SunGard (FIS) and continued on to TD Ameritrade. But something still wasn’t right. “I was making all this money for these institutions,” she says. “And I was the only one there at that level who was Latina and a woman. It was a wake-up call—and she knew she wanted something different.
She would later bootstrap and launch Ladada, a fashion subscription service that elevated emerging designers, eventually leading the startup to an exit with a company she would later trade during her time at Nasdaq. That journey opened her eyes to yet another side of systemic inequality. Raising capital, she says, was “a very closed-door ecosystem.” Lucas vividly remembers pitching to rooms full of investors who didn’t understand her product — and who often responded by phoning a woman in their lives for validation. “That’s how it was done,” she says.
Capital Inequities
It was a full-circle moment: someone who once managed capital flows in elite financial institutions was now struggling to access that same capital as a founder. Now, she’s using her platform to open doors for others who’ve been historically shut out.
“I had been in the industry, made a lot of money for corporate America, understood Wall Street, went out and started my own business, and again saw that it was still a very closed-door ecosystem. I flipped the script.”
– Laura Moreno Lucas
As a Managing Director at Nasdaq, she helped take Airbnb, Lyft, Beyond Meat, and The RealReal public. She later founded Pandocap, a financial media and advisory firm that helps underestimated founders navigate capital markets. Those experiences ultimately led her to L’ATTITUDE Ventures, where today she serves as a General Partner of a $100 million purpose-led fund focused on early-stage Latino-led companies in the U.S. “We’re not just funding businesses—we’re unlocking access,” she says.
After selling her startup and joining L’ATTITUDE Ventures, Lucas quickly became a central connector for women founders and fellow investors. As the only woman among the partnership at the firm, she became a magnet for those seeking advice, introductions, and capital. “I have strong access to deal flow and love to share investor guidance,” she says, “but really, I take pride in being a resource to all.”
As she fielded requests and reviewed pitches, it became clear how many brilliant, highly qualified women—particularly Latinas—were still going overlooked. “They weren’t getting funded,” she says. “I can’t fund everybody, so I said, ‘Let me connect you with another investor who could take a look at this.”
When she reached out to women in her network, another problem became evident: women needed to be more intentional about creating space to collaborate. “Guys do this organically,” Lucas says. “For women, we have to schedule it. We have to build ecosystems where we come together to talk about this.”
So, she did. Lucas began hosting monthly deal-sharing calls with a small group of Latina investors, which evolved into the Libra Leaders platform. “It was just a monthly gathering… to really talk about deals,” she recalls. “When a really high-performing founder would come in, we started helping them, not just with capital, but with resources and connectivity. It was really about tipping the scales of capital to help them grow.”
The Pen is Mightier
The momentum Libra Leaders generated, combined with her own experiences, led Lucas to write “Latinas in VC: A Master Guide to the Voices, Strategies, and Stories of Latinas and Women in Venture Capital.” The book shares her story and highlights dozens of Latina investors leading global innovation and managing major funds. “They’re running half-billion-dollar firms. They’re able to cut real checks,” she says. “It’s about visibility, strategy, and opening doors.”
Together, the book and the Libra Leaders platform form the foundation of a growing movement—one rooted in access, ownership, and intergenerational change. Libra has since grown to more than 50 leaders, and Lucas remains focused on raising capital to help this ecosystem continue to flourish.
And it’s not just about Latinas anymore. “Women are going to inherit over $30 trillion in terms of wealth transfer,” she notes. “They want to direct those investments into things they want to see grow … This is about women as a whole.” Lucas envisions Libra as a connective hub that collaborates with organizations like United Latinas, which supports board-ready corporate leaders, and Latinas in Tech, which fuels the talent pipeline. “Marrying all of that with capital,” she says, “we could really be a force to drive innovation forward.”
Laura I. Maydón, founder of Miami-based Ascendo Venture Capital, has collaborated closely with Lucas through Libra Leaders since inception. Ascendo invests in early-stage companies led by underrepresented founders who are leveraging disruptive technologies to serve overlooked, high-growth markets. Maydón, who was also featured in “Latinas in VC,” noted the shared alignment with Luca’s founder-first approach. “Laura is very passionate about identifying the best founders and helping them scale. She’s pro-founder, which aligns with my values as well,” Maydón says.
Maydón also highlighted the value and collaborative spirit within Libra Leaders. “It’s an environment where we openly share deal flow, invite promising founders to pitch, and explore co-investing opportunities,” she explains. “What Laura has built at Libra Leaders is a friendly and effective way to share deals and create space for Latina investors to connect and support each other while doing our work. It really takes time and intention to build up a community like that. Laura is a trusted peer and a great community builder.”
The Good Fight
Despite a rising tide of anti-DEI sentiment in politics and business, Lucas remains energized by what she sees on the ground. “If there’s one thing I know about our community,” she says, “it’s that we don’t stop and that we are resilient.” She points to a milestone as proof: a $15 million Series A led by Latina tech founder, Valentina Ratner. “She is the most talented, the most qualified… and her product is outperforming what we have here in the United States.”
For Lucas, it’s not about identity alone. “It’s not, ‘Hey, I’m Latina, I’m a woman.’ It’s, ‘I’m the best at what I do.’” And that, she argues, is precisely the point. “We are the ecosystem that’s driving innovation. We are the ecosystem that’s driving opportunity and growth in the United States.” And with Latinos now representing the largest youth growth cohort in the country, she says the future is already here. “You have to fund that, no matter what.”
While some progress has been made—particularly post-COVID—in funding emerging managers and diverse-led firms, Lucas stresses that success stories must now scale. “We need them to be the next Teslas, the next Airbnbs, the next Amazons—and have meaningful exits.” Success, she believes, will unlock even more capital. “Once we start to show that as a Latino community, the money will just come,” she says. “Because people will see the talent and the returns.”
To ensure diverse asset managers—particularly those in the Latino community—receive more equitable institutional allocations, the focus must be on returns. “We need to make these companies win,” Lucas says. Over the past five years, more capital has trickled into emerging managers, but it’s not enough. Now, those early-stage investments are entering the growth phase, and it’s critical they produce meaningful exits — “the next Teslas, the next Airbnbs.” When Latino-led firms demonstrate performance, capital will follow. Just as important, says Lucas, is reinvesting in the very ecosystems that originally backed them.
Her story, like those of her colleagues and the founders she supports, is one of transformation: from the daughter of Mexican immigrants to a dealmaker and an architect of inclusive capital.
“Laura has been instrumental in highlighting Latinas in venture capital with the book she published earlier this year. She regularly hosts events connecting us all, which is super important to have a community to support each other.”
– Samara Mejia Hernandez, Founding Partner, Chingona Ventures
“Laura has been instrumental in highlighting Latinas in venture capital with the book she published earlier this year. She regularly hosts events connecting us all, which is super important to have a community to support each other.”
– Samara Mejia Hernandez, Founding Partner, Chingona Ventures
Lucas says performance and purpose aren’t mutually exclusive—and that the future of venture capital doesn’t just include diverse voices; it depends on them. “We’re here,” she emphasizes. “We’re qualified. We’re building the companies—and the economy—of tomorrow.”