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In honor of the contributions of Latina leaders in Web3 and fintech, I curated and spoke to a list of visionary entrepreneurs, CFOs, business developers, and marketing vice presidents to understand what inspired them to join the field, how they are making a significant impact, and how they are setting strong examples for others.
Liz Bazurto believes that Web3 represents the most exciting innovation of our time and offers equal opportunities for women and minorities in the field. She saw the potential for Web3 to increase access to financial services and instruments, empower people through ownership and decentralization, and benefit those who are currently underserved.
“I am a member of Coinbase’s business development team. We support developers who are building decentralized applications and drive partnerships,” she says. “I also support our international growth for Coinbase Wallet and am honored to be a global lead for our UNIDOS employee resource group (ERG). Through our UNIDOS ERG, we promote education and a sense of belonging with our Latino and Hispanic colleagues and with external partners.”
Betsabe Botaitis sees the potential for Web3 to bring about gender equality through the removal of biases via blockchain technology and the provision of new freedoms through digital assets. She places a strong emphasis on merit-based compensation, regardless of background.
“I think that in the next two years, we will see increasing adoption of web3 technology by institutions and the general public, plus more government initiatives including regulation. A sound regulatory environment will promote enterprise adoption. Central bank digital currencies and stable coins will drive education, which, in turn, will drive adoption and growth. For all these benefits to happen, decision-makers and innovators need to communicate effectively and not work in silos,” she says.
Cristina Diaz strongly believes that Web3 can create opportunities for women through empowering and educating communities. She is especially intrigued by the versatility of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which sparked her passion for this growing field.
“I would like to encourage women to join the communities in Web3 created to empower and educate. A diverse ecosystem in Web3 is key for the technology to get mass adoption.” says Diaz. As for her platform, she adds “we are trying to make our platform easy to use for everyone, regardless of the knowledge level of Web3.”
Elena Giralt considers technology a tool for shaping processes and beliefs, making Web3 a promising space to advance gender equality. Giralt’s interest in Web3 was sparked by her research on crypto adoption in Venezuela, which showed her the power of censorship-resistant technology in challenging circumstances and led her to invest in Web3 to advance gender equality.
“I’m encouraged by research in this area and groups like SheFi, Meta Delta Gamma, Women in Blockchain, Women Build Web3, and many others. I firmly believe that creating spaces for more perspectives will result in better products, better businesses, and more resilient networks,” pectives will result in better products, better businesses, and more resilient networks,” says Giralt says. “I focus on product marketing at Hiro, a developer tooling company finding ways to bring web3 to Bitcoin. In addition, I help host a meetup group in New York called Blockchain Latinx. The purpose of this group is to bring together people who want to explore and discuss ways in which decentralized systems can benefit society.”
Magdalena Madrigal’s love for learning and teaching others motivates her involvement in Web3. She sees it as the next evolution of the internet and wants to ensure that everyone feels welcome via opportunities for career growth, hackathons, speaking engagements, financial support, and more.
“Web3 Familia is Latino focused but not exclusive, so if you are looking for a welcoming community to learn web3 alongside with please tune in @web3familia on all channels,” she encourages. “I hope to see a bigger share of women-led projects in the space, and along with that the recognition.
With eighteen years of experience in financial inclusion, Jessica Olivan regards the current fintech boom as a chance to scale her impact. She recognizes the vital role of women in fintech, especially the importance of using technology to further financial inclusion.
“Women are, in majority, the administrators of financial resources at home, businesses, and at a personal level. Having women develop products and developing products that target women is an “organic” and wise business decision,” she says. “We are two women co-founders, one from Colombia and one from Mexico. Our endeavor is Velara, a community-based digital space where Spanish-speaking women entrepreneurs can learn about personal and business finance, hire a money coach and access capital to grow their businesses.”
Gianina (Gigi) Skarlett was drawn to the Web3 space for its potential for innovation and education. She sees the low barriers to entry as an opportunity to create a more inclusive environment and believes Web3 can empower women through financial independence and digital self-sovereignty.
“I’m currently focused on onboarding the next generation into the growing world of Web3 technology through Crypto Tech Women [CTW],” the founder says, “while also empowering women and marginalized groups to join and thrive in Web3. This is accomplished through exciting in-person events and our sister platform, W3 Learn Academy, which provides high-quality on-demand Web3 education to CTW NFT holders.”
Monica Taher encourages women to embrace emerging technologies and to inspire girls and young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields. She was intrigued by the potential of blockchain technology to revolutionize the world, similar to the impact of the internet, and wants to help women understand and take advantage of this change.
“I focus on our company’s goal of converting merchants that already accept credit card payments and empower them to accept crypto payments,” she explains. “In addition, our company has a rewards program for shoppers where merchants can promote their services and products and tackle the Metaverse $3 trillion market.”
Follow these women and get inspired to pursue emerging technologies and the future.
Monica Talan is the founder of CryptoConexión, a Spanish-language platform to drive awareness and engagement in the decentralized economy. Today her platform is attracting users in Latin America who are new to blockchain, crypto, Web3, NFTs and the Metaverse. Her team is located in Argentina, Mexico, Spain and the United States.
