Mendoza Ventures closes $100M early growth fund led by Bank of America
Ahead of Martin Luther King Day, Mendoza Ventures said it has closed its third fund.
The female- and Latinx-founded fintech, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity venture capital firm landed a $100 million fund that Mendoza Ventures said it will invest in early growth stage startups with a focus on diverse teams.
The initial close was led by Bank of America, and included Grasshopper Bank and other investors.
“As a female- and Latinx-founded and -led venture fund, we are uniquely positioned to fund the series A to B for diverse or female led founders,” Mendoza Ventures general partner Adrian Mendoza said in a news release. “This is one of the very few diverse-led VC funds that are funding at this stage especially in a market where capital is shrinking for diverse founders.”
Mendoza Ventures explained Fund II’s capital allocation of 80% to underrepresented founders — defined as female, immigrant, person of color or LBGTQ — underscores how these commitments have ripple effects from diverse founders to impacting diverse communities through fintech.
The firm added Fund III breaks the $100 million “glass ceiling” for female and diverse GPs in Venture Capital and fill in the early growth capital gap for diverse and female-led startups.
“Bank of America’s investment into Mendoza Ventures underscores our ongoing efforts to address the persistent gap in access to growth capital for minority- and women-led businesses,” said Renee Nalbandyan, director in global corporate strategy at Bank of America.
“Mendoza Ventures is at the forefront of supporting innovation and driving diversity not only within venture capital, but also across the fintech industry, and our investment is a step towards creating positive change and more economic opportunities across the country.”
The news release also mentioned the anchor funding comes from Bank of America as part of its commitment to advancing racial equality and economic opportunity, of which more than $400 million is allocated to investments in mission-focused venture funds.