Gabriela Berrospi became interested in the financial market when she arrived in New York from Lima, Peru, where she was born. More precisely, when she studied at the University of New York (NYU), very close to Wall Street. There she noticed two things: one, that she was very interested in finances, two, that there was a space where educate and promote the art of investing in a community that has low percentages of access to the financial market.

Curiosity about how to handle money and manage it to achieve greater wealth and security increased by a personal experience: Berrospi's family had gone through a bankruptcy, a situation that left its mark on her.

"How did I start? I took advice, studied and opened my investment account. It was very good for me in 2008, when prices were very different on the stock market compared to what we see now due to the subprime crisis, and when they started to recover, I was able to do a good job. So I understood that Wall Street exists because it works. Hence, I decided to create my own Wall Street," she told LPO exclusively.

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The Peruvian investor who had arrived in New York City decided to create an educational platform in 2019 called Latino Wall Street, which is now number one in the Hispanic market and offers courses in Spanish so that the community can join the world of investments. As a business, it is also successful: generating a seven-figure income.

It is a difficult economic moment, an inflation that accelerates with a GDP that decelerates. It is not optional to prepare and educate yourself financially. If you don't know how, you are not alone. I would say educate yourself and learn so that you can protect yourself and grow.

Berrospi is almost famous: more than 10,000 users pay for her courses and talks, and she was also selected for the Forbes Finance Council. Yahoo Finance has pointed her as one of the top 10 entrepreneurs women in 2020, and she is considered among the 10 Latinas that most impact their communities in 2023 on HITN TV. Two years ago, she was awarded by Senator Robert Menéndez for her work as a Latina community guide to financial freedom and success.

I began to realize that information in Spanish was needed in such a gringo world. I also realized that I was the only Latina woman in this environment. I thought "I must produce a change so that we are not left behind." It was influenced by what happened to my family: we went bankruptcy. There was something they couldn't handle and maybe if they had had more information it would not have happened. If they had had that knowledge, they could have prevented it. That is why it is essential to educate people on financial issues.

Did the venture work quickly? Did you notice that there was a demand for financial information aimed at Latinos?

We started in 2019 and we had a very large growth. We did very well that year because we did a lot of conferences and talks. Then, in 2020, we had to cancel all the events due to the pandemic and we went 100% online. Frankly, all that benefited us. That made thousands of people join us. We had Zoom talks with 1,000 people, the maximum the platform allows, and many people could not join us. It also helped that our Facebook ads were seen by millions, including several celebrities who became customers.

What makes us different is that we are trained and we are being mentored by people who have experience. The big difference is the quality and level of professionals you have access to with Latino Wall Street.

I thought that it would always be something against me, but it was in my favor. Many women called me, they were interested. Ironically, it was a weakness on Wall Street, but in the end it helped connect more people and have a greater presence with Latinos. It was not a weakness.

What are Latinos like when it comes to investing?

There are two profiles. Some are afraid, they take little risk and are indecisive. And then there's the opposite. They are very risky and risk all their money without risk management. You cannot put everything at once, there is a process of learning first, educating, avoiding losses, etc... You have to gradually lose your fears because the impact of not doing so means not growing, being left behind.

I understood that Wall Street exists because it works. Hence I decided to create my own Wall Street. I thought that being a woman would be something against me, but it worked in my favor. Ironically, what used to be a weakness helped me in the end.

It is a good market moment because we are seeing many crises, what is happening with bank collapses, the war against dollar, right now with the national debt that is at records. It is time to protect our money, to learn how to make it grow. The market has cycles and is affected, and that is why fundamental analysis is key to decide for yourself.

They must take action. We are in a difficult economic moment, an inflation that is accelerating with a GDP that is decelerating. It is not optional to prepare and educate yourself financially. If you don't know how, you are not alone. I would say educate yourself and learn so that you can protect yourself and grow.

I have seen people quit their jobs and invest their money. That was my case. My net assets went from zero to realizing my dreams and doing the things I have always wanted to do.