There is plenty of evidence that supports the link between having more women in business leadership positions and higher profitability. Yet, we see the outnumbering of women in the corporate finance industry. However, the progress on gender balance in the workforce in the financial services industry is being carried out. The mindsets are shifting slowly but surely due to the hard work and commitment of women leaders.
Women are bringing a much-needed change to the sector of corporate finance. They are creating a stronghold for themselves. One such woman is Ángela Álvarez, the Founder and Executive Chairman of Aglaia Capital, who has been evolving with her own view corporate finance and the finance industry, establishing her independent corporate finance advisory firm, combining the traditional world with a new digital world, founding also a Fintech using blockchain based on her own vision on her industry, leading a new generation of corporate finance, where finance, digital and values such as sustainability, diversity, and impact for a better world, are co-existing
In our endeavor to find ‘The 10 Most Influential Women in Finance, 2021,’ we crossed our paths with Ángela. In the following interview, we got a detailed insight into her journey so far.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Take our readers through your journey and the challenges you came across founding Aglaia Capital & being a Finance Professional.
Serendipity has been a constant in my professional and vital path. Every challenge I have faced has brought a new beginning or something more aligned with my interests. I usually focus my attention and energy on the new instead of looking back; so many challenges have appeared along this path and have converted into means for advancing my growth process.
Aglaia Capital was born with a determined convincement of contributing to changing the industries where I have developed my professional career, Investment Banking, Corporate Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, Restructuring, and Alternative Finance industries. On the one hand, exploring and developing with Blockchain a platform for making more efficient and scalable the business of providing funding and making investments. On the other hand, trying to imprint a way of doing business where ethics and balance among the parties will be present through a transparent and trustful way of proceeding, as well as the values that also constitutes our essence, such as innovation, sustainability, integrity, diversity, and impact to make a better world.
What is your idea of impactful leadership? What style of leadership do you personally prefer at Aglaia Capital?
My idea of impactful leadership is leading by example, also inspire others to make an impact. I like talent, passion, commitment, and transparency and honesty, as a way to create trust. I like cooperative business models where the parties are related on the basis of a trustful ecosystem
Taking into consideration the current pandemic and its impact on global economies, how are you driving the company to sustain operations and ensuring the safety of your associates and employees at the same time?
We are used to working, also earlier remotely from everywhere, using tools that make it easy to work within the team or with partners or external teams. The impact on the economy brought us also new opportunities on the traditional Corporate Finance, but also on the digital assets space, where it has speeded further the transformation and adoption of the Blockchain and digital assets.
What opportunities do you and your company offer for Financial growth with Investment solutions to Individuals and Corporates?
On the traditional Corporate Finance business, where we are focus on Hotels, Real Estate, and Alternative Financing for all sectors, with a focus mainly in Europe and selectively in other geographies. We have an affiliated company in London, UK. We usually work with niche investors, family offices, and funds that are not the most common in the market, and we offer off-market selected opportunities, as well as alternative finance solutions for corporates and for developers, Real Estate, and hotels.
We are also a Fintech, offering Aglaia Capital DeFi Platform for Tokenisations developed with blockchain technology mainly focused on the digitalization of securities, security tokens and connected to a secondary market of digital assets, which we are about to launch.
We advise on “Token generating events” from the strategy process, implementation, development, and set up of investment vehicles constituted for this purpose, as well as providing our own platform to carry out the private and public sale of the digital asset through the platform Aglaia Capital DeFi Platform with connection to a secondary market of Digital Assets that will provide funding for owners of assets wanting to sell and also provide investment opportunities coming from the new economy.
On digital assets, as well, we are in the process of launching a security token that allows you to invest with an underlying asset, get an annual result, and reducing your carbon footprint, participating in venture capital aiming at sustainable investments, also aligned with one of our core values.
What makes your organization’s Strategy and Financial advice a preferred choice of your clients over the competition?
In traditional Corporate Finance, we usually are focused on a niche base, with investors that are not on the market and with investment opportunities that are off-market. Our advice is personalized, independent, and we usually analyze the opportunities with a lens of investors and know well the ecosystem of investors and financing providers and what they are interested in.
Related to digital assets and Blockchain, we are insiders also in the Financial Industry, which makes a difference for the understanding and assisting in maximize the value
On Digital assets, we are also a Fintech company, with our own blockchain development, Aglaia Capital DeFi Platform, which allows us to get funding and invest easily while participating in the new financial infrastructure.
According to you, what essential traits should entrepreneurs possess to thrive in the present-day cutthroat business ecosystem?
Resilience, Courage, Determination, Creativity, and Paradoxical Thinking and Flexibility, as these traits allow to understand this complex world better and making better decisions which match with the business purposes. I also think that have a sustainable and diversity lens will be vital for entrepreneurs in the short term, being a competitive advantage, and also will act as selection criteria driven from consumers.
In what ways have you or the company contributed to the community? If given a chance, what change would you bring in solving the most complex financial problems for the clients?
I founded Aglaia Capital to combine traditional Corporate Finance and Fintech Blockchain, mainly focused on Transactional Services, and to contribute in transforming my industry where I have developed my professional career, Corporate Finance, Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A), Alternative Financing, Restructuring, and contributing in creating the new financial infrastructure.
The Aglaia Capital DeFi Platform deployed in a Permissioned Blockchain and connected with a Secondary Market of Digital assets provide access to assets owners to funding, and to investors in an easier and more efficient way by using Blockchain.
Ángela Álvarez, Founder and Executive Chairman, Aglaia Capital
