Originally from New York City, James is a multi-disciplined senior executive, growth-stage operator and entrepreneur with over 30 years managing complex, scalable teams (public & private) companies. James works with management teams to optimize organizational behaviors and define key market engagement strategies. James has founded and/or structured go-to market strategies for multiple companies focused on disrupting traditional business models.

He founded Colorado-based Solera National Bancorp with over $1.2B assets after raising $29M in a self-underwritten IPO and is currently founding tech-focused Social Economy Ventures, a diversity-focused Seed-to-Series A+ venture capital group. He has extensive experience working with progressive growth companies and is the longest serving mentor, lecturer and capital advisor for the Stanford University Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI) at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business since program inception in 2015.

James has served on over twenty boards including; Bank Holding Company, Venture Capital, Fintechs, Community Development Financial Institutions, Financial Literacy. He currently serves on the Investment Committee of New Community Transformation Fund, a venture capital fund based in Denver, Colorado. Prior to moving to Colorado, James was Head Trader for a Woodland Hills, CA-based family office and was an equities portfolio and treasury asset manager for Merrill Lynch and Smith Barney/Morgan Stanley specializing in women & BIPOC-owned companies in New York City.

James and his family live in Lafayette, CO. He graduated from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs with a BA in International Relations.