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A warm welcome back to our Moneda visionaries. In the first week of the Trump administration, several actions have deeply impacted our community, particularly with heightened immigration enforcement and the removal of Spanish-language resources from the White House website. These moves, coupled with the threat of large-scale deportations, DEI order, and the dismantling of environmental justice programs disproportionately affect Latinos.
At Moneda Moves, we understand the power of stories, and we are committed to reporting responsibly at the intersection of money and cultura, especially as it applies to our leading entrepreneurial population. The numbers don’t lie: Latinos accounted for 36% of all new businesses in 2023, nearly double their 19% representation in the U.S. population. Immigrant Latinos are more than twice as likely to start a net new business compared to the U.S.-born population.
The stories we tell matter, and more than ever, they will continue to shape our reality. That’s why we started this platform—to ensure that the builders in our communities are seen and heard, especially when our contributions to the American economy and society for a long time went unrecognized in national headlines. Fundamentally, Moneda Moves believes in the inherent value of our community, as humans, but also in critical mass, and in our culture. This commitment remains steadfast.
In conversations with ecosystem builders who are working with underrepresented communities, it has been refreshing to know that we are not alone in this journey. A recent discussion reaffirmed the importance of staying informed, knowing our numbers which undeniably show the impact that we have together and how storytelling has the ability to create change. I highly recommend reading the 2023 State of Latino Entrepreneurship report by the Latino Business Action Network (LBAN) and Stanford Graduate School of Business.
The future is ours to shape, and we will continue to ensure that our stories are told with integrity and respect.
This is why we are also joined today by Fernando Hurtado, a former manager of digital video for NBCUniversal Local and the host/producer of Bísness School. Bísness School is a podcast that highlights the stories of Latino-owned businesses and the fact that Latinos are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the United States. That series won a silver Signal Award in 2024. Fernando has recently launched The Hyphen, a YouTube channel that covers one of the fastest-growing demographics, U.S. Latinos, with deeply researched, visually rich stories.
Beyond podcasting at major networks, Fernando was the lead producer on NBC’s My New Favorite Olympian podcast, which was named best sports podcast at the Cynopsis Sports Media Awards.
He’s expanded his coverage in this arena to the Paris, Tokyo, and Beijing Olympics for NBCUniversal Local. Hurtado was named to Broadcasting + Cable's 40 Under 40 in 2023. Prior to NBC, Fernando was at ATTN: and Sinclair Broadcast Group as a producer and editor. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California and lives in Los Angeles. He is currently an adjunct instructor of visual journalism and multiplatform Olympic and Paralympic storytelling there.
This journalist’s mission is to highlight Latino-owned businesses in English in order to reach younger bilingual audiences who are looking for positive representation in entrepreneurial spaces. In his effort to do so, he has produced over 20 episodes with successful Latino entrepreneurs, including Annie Leal, the owner of the $4M business, I Love Chamoy. It is no surprise that while living in Los Angeles, Fernando, like myself hails from Chicago, which is heavily influenced by Latino-run businesses, in neighborhoods from La Villita to Pilsen and Humboldt Park.
In addition to raising awareness about these businesses, he’s also sharing what’s working for them and what challenges they are facing in the entrepreneurial space so that other Latino entrepreneurs can learn from their stories. This week, Fernando shares how Latino entrepreneurs are using their stories to better market their products, why Latino businesses are seen as too niche or exclusive to other communities, and what trends he’s seeing in 2025.
Follow Fernando on Instagram @byfernandoh and his website.
Follow the The Hyphen podcast on YouTube, and wherever you listen to podcasts.
Follow the Bísness School podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts.
Follow Moneda Moves on Instagram: @MonedaMoves
Follow your host Lyanne Alfaro on Instagram: @LyanneAlfaro
Main podcast theme song from Premium Beat. Our music is from Epidemic Sound.
