¡Feliz Día de los Muertos!
Since I was a young woman, I was fascinated with the image of La Catrina, which has become the “face” of the Día de los Muertos holiday.
The original image was created by Mexican Illustrator Jose Guadalupe Posada, as part of satirical lithographs caricatures that placed skulls in for faces of central figures, ridiculing class characters and making statements about his political times. Posada became a strong influencer of other artists such as Muralists Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and even Frida Kahlo. The tradition got mixed with the Catholic ceremonies of All Saints Day (November 1) and All Souls Day (November 2) in many countries in Latin America.
Today, we are using her image. First, because she is an iconic woman in Latino folklore and second, because these are also political times to make statements about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in our industry and beyond. As I highlight in my article “Transparency” below, these are times to shine the light on issues that affect us all as Americans.
We are celebrating the passing of California’s AB 890, legislation authored by Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside), a “Transparency Act” ensuring that millions of Californians receive the best options for their investments.
In this newsletter, we are placing the spotlight on one of our members and NAA's strong supporters, Estancia Capital Partners. Michael Mendez and Takashi Moriuchi co-founded Estancia Capital Management in 2010, and they give an interesting perspective of how the industry has evolved.
We celebrate our Board Member and VC of the NAA Institute Dolores Munoz. Thanks, Dolores, for your dedication and hard work in propelling NAA’s mission forward.
A NEW Section of Career Opportunities has been linked to our NAA website so you can find the most relevant and updated opportunities that are shared with us on a daily basis.
As we always say, NAA’s membership is key in accessing relevant information for networking and building relationships. Moving along nicely with our Fall National Tour, we have completed eight meetings of our September and October CIO’s Asset Class Connections round with great turnouts. Save your dates for what is yet to come -see below!
Last but not least, we have an exciting announcement: Our first Members-Only and Special Guests LIVE event -post-pandemic- will take place in NYC on October 21, 2021. In strategic partnership with PitchBook, our Chair of the Board Gerson Guzman worked tirelessly to host this wonderful opportunity for companies to hear a relevant panel of speakers about the topic “Seeding and Anchoring the Next Generation of Managers.” Registration now is closed but if you are interested in attending, you can contact our Chairman directly at gguzman@ceibacapitalpartners.com.
With that, I just wish everyone a wonderful celebration of your Día de los Muertos version -if you have one- and encourage you to continue in your quest to find success!
¡Muchísimas gracias a todos!
Solange F. Brooks
|
|
|
NAA Voices
Transparency by Solange Fernandez Brooks
|
|
One of the purposes of the New America Alliance is to focus a spotlight –on our incredible investment firms and managers, on our community, and on the possibilities that are in our future. This is a practice that was started long before I came to this organization. In fact, you may say that it is an NAA 21-year-old tradition going back to the organization’s founding in 1999.
We recently focused our spotlight on transparency. Transparency allows us to see what is, to take responsibility, identify how best to improve, and frankly, to acknowledge what has been accomplished and where there is work to be done. Transparency is also accountability. That is why it is so important that our institutions, including our largest public pension plans, be transparent, accountable, and worthy of the public’s trust and confidence.
On October 4, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 890, legislation authored by Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) that will require the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) and the Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) to report annually to the California Legislature on their use of emerging and diverse managers across all assets classes in which the funds invest. The two California pension funds with more than $790 billion in assets are the biggest public funds in the nation, affecting approximately 2,975,000 Californians.
|
|
Best in Class
Dolores Muñoz, Cabrera Capital
|
|
|
|
Dolores Muñoz is the Senior Relationship Manager at Cabrera Capital Markets, a premier global investment banking, and institutional brokerage services firm. Joining Cabrera in 2003, Dolores has steadily advanced and assumed increasing levels of responsibility within the organization, from overseeing the firm’s trading infrastructure and operations for over 300 institutional accounts to her current role, where she focuses on business development and building strategic alliances.
She was instrumental in the implementation of the firm’s trading platforms that led to new investment product offerings and business lines. As a result, Cabrera became a leading provider of global equity and taxable fixed income brokerage services to its institutional clients. This diverse client base includes some of the largest public and union pension funds, asset managers, corporations, hedge funds, as well as foundations and endowments. In aggregate, and as a result of this diverse client base, the firm executes over $1.5 billion notionally daily in global equities, municipal and corporate debt securities, as well as U.S. Treasuries and agencies.
Dolores, a board member of New America Alliance and Vice-Chair of the New America Alliance Institute, has always worked on leveling the playing field by advancing policies to increase diverse firms’ access to capital.
Cabrera Capital is committed to providing client solutions and building underserved communities, so Dolores has been also fortunate to work for a CEO who has been a strong advocate and instrumental in leading the efforts to increase diverse firms’ access to capital issues nationally. Martin Cabrera’s example in addressing these socioeconomic inequities has set the bar to work in advancing policies to increase diverse firms’ access to capital and representation of women and minorities.
|
|
|
Blue Chip
Michael Mendez and Takashi Moriuchi
Estancia Capital Partners
|
|
|
|
Mike Mendez and Takashi Moriuchi co-founded Estancia Capital Partners in 2010 to leverage their collective expertise as successful operators and “specialist” investors in the Financial Services sector for over two decades. Estancia manages $420 mm in assets with a wide variety of Institutional investors including Public Retirement Systems, Insurance Companies, Institutional Allocators, and Family Offices among its investors.
The firm is 90% minority-owned, with 63% of its employees representing minorities and women. This commitment to D&I doesn’t end inside its doors. Nearly 40% of board seats at Estancia’s portfolio companies are held by minorities or women.
“At Estancia, we value not only diversity of race and gender, but of thought and experience. We recognize that our varied backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences allow us to bring a more creative and differentiated approach to our investment and decision-making process, and hence produce better outcomes for our valued Limited Partners,” said Mike Mendez, Managing Partner of Estancia.
Growing up in San Jose, CA, and working summers in the orchards/fields and flea markets of San Jose and surrounding areas, Mike developed the values of integrity, hard work, and tenacity, which have served him well over his now 40-year professional career. These values are foundational to Estancia’s culture and reflected in our cherished partners, such as the NAA.
“We have benefited in building brand awareness from our affiliation with NAA. Estancia is proud to support NAA’s advocacy for better D&I policies nationwide and the NAA Institute Pathway Fellows --an exemplary initiative of the organization’s commitment to the next generation of Latinx financial executives,” Takashi Moriuchi added.
|
|
|
2021 NAA NATIONAL TOUR - FALL SESSION
Upcoming CIO Asset Class Connections
|
|
Great turnout at CIO Asset Class Connections meeting with Illinois State Board of Investment ISBI |
|
Upcoming LIVE Event in NYC - Members-Only!
New America Alliance in partnership with PitchBook
|
|
New! Career Opportunities
|
|
NAA supports matching high-quality professional talent with institutions across the United States. SEE CAREER OPPORTUNITIES HERE. Interested candidates, please reference New America Alliance in your application and notify Jodi Towner at jtowner@naaonline.org once submitted so we may be aware of your candidacy.
Employers, you may submit information on current high-level and high-impact job vacancies to Jodi Towner at jtowner@naaonline.org.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
