J.P. Morgan commits $20 million in support of Latino-led businesses

March 29, 2022 – NEW YORK – L’ATTITUDE Ventures, a venture fund focused on supporting U.S. Latino-owned startups, has received a $20 million commitment from J.P. Morgan, making it the anchor investor in the $100 million fund. 

L’ATTITUDE Ventures was founded by global business executive, Sol Trujillo and Gary Acosta, founder of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, and recently joined by Oscar Munoz, former Chairman and CEO of United Airlines. The fund aims to support Latino businesses at critical stages of early development, providing them with capital, expertise, and visibility to accelerate growth.

“The U.S. Latino cohort is the most significant growth cohort in the country, while at the same time the most under-capitalized cohort in America,” said Trujillo. “Fueling this important economic engine for our country’s economy has to become a priority, which J.P. Morgan supports and believes in as evidenced by their investment in L’ATTITUDE Ventures.”

A report by Bain & Company* found that $1.4 trillion in revenue growth could be unlocked if Latino-owned businesses had the same access and connections to capital as white-owned businesses. The Bain & Company report quantified that just a 1% share of investments from the top 25 venture capital and private equity firms went to Latino-owned businesses.

“Latino-led businesses are critical to the U.S. economy, but they often lack access to capital and resources for growth,” said Daniel Pinto, President and Chief Operating Officer of JPMorgan Chase. “Our investment in L’ATTITUDE Ventures builds on our firm’s $30 billion racial equity commitment, further extending our support to U.S. Latino entrepreneurs and small businesses.” 

Not only is L’ATTITUDE Ventures a major source of investment capital for Latino-owned businesses, it is also making sure these businesses receive the coaching, mentoring, and connections that are essential to maximizing their growth potential. This fund serves as a prototype in how to invest in 21st century America’s New Mainstream Economy.

J.P. Morgan’s commitment complements an initiative announced earlier this year by the bank’s Asset Management Global Alternatives business. The initiative, called Project Spark, provides initial seed capital to funds managed by diverse, emerging alternative managers, including minority-led and women-led venture funds. Project Spark has already allocated capital to a number of individual funds and is contributing to JPMorgan Chase’s overall investment in L’ATTITUDE Ventures.

About L’ATTITUDE Ventures

L’ATTITUDE Ventures is a purpose-led venture fund that invests in early-stage U.S. Latino-led and owned businesses with large and high-growth opportunities capturable through technology. Founded in 2019, by L’ATTITUDE co-founders Sol Trujillo and Gary Acosta, along with Kennie Blanco, LAT VC was launched to directly address a troubling economic cost to our country: the underfunding of U.S. Latino entrepreneurs. For more information, visit: https://lattitude.vc

About JPMorgan Chase

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading financial services firm based in the United States of America (“U.S.”), with operations worldwide. JPMorgan Chase had $3.7 trillion in assets and $294.1 billion in stockholders’ equity as of December 31, 2021. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing and asset management. Under the J.P. Morgan and Chase brands, the Firm serves millions of customers in the U.S., and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients globally. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.

^{*Footnote: Bain & Company report: Closing the capital gap, October, 2021}