SBDC Success Story
Monika Mantilla of Altura Capital
Monika Mantilla was born in Bogota, Colombia. She graduated from high school at age 16, earned a law degree at 21 with top honors, and then achieved an MBA from Columbia University. After graduation she decided to start her own firm, Altura Capital. Altura Capital is a firm that provides investment management consulting, private equity, management consulting and general management assistance. Monika’s goal was to understand the needs and opportunities of large institutional investors, introduce smaller firms to these institutions, and in expose the institutions to new talent. The Altura Platform seamlessly integrates information on diverse emerging managers in an easy-to-use package. Part of the firm’s competitive advantage is unique research, data, analytics, due diligence, market intelligence, and collaborative tools. Altura provides a comprehensive solution for institutional investors seeking to gain exposure to EM’s.
Monika put together an extensive business plan expressing her firm’s need for additional capital to expand its business portal. Working with Clarence Stanley, Director of the Bronx SBDC at Lehman College, and Hector Molina-Casillas, Vice President at The New York Business Development Corporation, the firm was able to obtain the first phase of financing - $150,000 in an SBA 7(a) loan and $150,000 from the World Trade Center Fund. Additional financing of $100,000 is pending. Monika believes that access to capital is a major hurdle emerging firms need to overcome to be successful, and is grateful for the assistance provided by the SBDC.
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