MEDIA ADVISORY: New Stanford Research Finds Latino-Owned Businesses Still Face Funding Ceiling, Despite Explosive Growth

Full report to be unveiled at Feb. 7 event

STANFORD, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#StanfordSOLE–Stanford Graduate School of Business:


WHAT:		Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI), and the Latino Business Action Network (LBAN) will unveil the findings of their latest research on Latino entrepreneurship in the U.S.

		The 2018 State of Latino Entrepreneurship report includes responses from more than 5,000 Latino-owned companies around the U.S. The annual report is designed to identify business growth potential as well as hindrances to entrepreneurship among Latinos. Among the findings:
		• Across capital types, national banks provide minimal loan funding to Latino-owned businesses.
		• Latina-owned companies are increasing in number; however, Latina entrepreneurs also face a funding ceiling.
		• Successful Latino immigrant entrepreneurs are more likely to be millennials who came to the U.S. as children — presumably making many of them eligible for the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

WHERE:		CEMEX Auditorium
		Knight Management Center
		Stanford Graduate School of Business
		655 Knight Way
		Stanford, CA 94305

		*NOTE: Members of the media are advised to register here in advance for access and parking passes.*

WHEN:		Wednesday, Feb. 7, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

WHO:		Speakers include top-level CEOs and industry experts as well as academic experts from Stanford Graduate School of Business. Following a presentation of findings, a panel discussion will explore the experience of Latino entrepreneurship from the perspective of top Latino entrepreneurs.

		Panelists

		• Catalina Campos is the CEO of Greenovate Construction, which makes energy-efficient modular homes.
		• Tom Chavez is the founder and CEO of Krux Digital, which delivers cloud-based infrastructure for capturing, protecting, connecting, and monetizing consumer cookie information across devices.
		• Maria Rios is the president and CEO of Nation Waste, Inc., the country’s largest waste-removal company to be owned by a female Hispanic and one of Texas’s largest minority-owned companies.

		Moderator

		David Segura is CEO of VisionPro, a company whose specialized products deliver a distinct range of IT practices to workforce solutions that drive operational efficiencies and innovation.

WHY:		Latino-owned businesses remain the fastest-growing entrepreneurial segment in the United States. With the current political landscape of immigration reform and the future of DACA unclear, millions of dollars that could be guaranteed to be poured into the U.S. economy for the foreseeable future are at stake. Retaining Latino entrepreneurs as a driving economic force in the U.S. economy is more important than ever. A stronger U.S. economy depends on supporting Latino-owned businesses. The Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI) will present the driving forces and challenges, including capital access, of this high-impact group of entrepreneurs. Among other compelling findings, the report highlights Latina entrepreneurs, whose growth over the past decade nearly outpaces that of all other demographic groups combined.