"If my name isn't Serena Williams, I'm not going to not get VC money" - American on why she chooses to invest in women & people of color

Serena Williams recently sat down for a candid chat with MLB legend Alex Rodriguez, where she let her fans in on the ins and outs of her foray into venture capitalism.

Williams is a 23-time Major winner who competed on the WTA Tour from 1995 to 2022. The American retired from pro tennis at the age of 40, playing the final tournament of her career at the 2022 US Open. Since then, she has prioritized her home life and businesses, the latter of which includes her venture capitalist firm 'Serena Ventures'.

Speaking to former baseball star Alex Rodriguez, who is also an investor, Serena Williams disclosed that helping entrepreneurs who were either female or of color raise capital brought great joy to her.

"It's a competition, I loved it. It gave me energy. It gives me life, and telling my story. And also this isn't about me and it's not about me raising capital. We are investing in women," Serena Williams told Alex Rodriguez. "We are investing in people of color. Like that 2% is women. People of color, women of color is less than a fraction."

Furthermore, she talked about the challenges that they regularly face at the hands of the banking industry.

"Like if I want to start a business and my name isn't Serena Williams, I'm going to have to take something out on my house," she added. "I'm going to have to go to the bank, like it's not I'm not going to be... I'm just going to not be able to get VC money. But we're changing that."

Towards the end of the interaction, Williams claimed that 68% of her personal portfolio consisted of women and people of color — which is something she takes pride in.

"And we don't only invest in women, we don't only invest in people of color but we're putting that on a platform," she said. "My portfolio right now, as it stands, is 68% women or person of color. And that is unheard of in the VC world."

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Serena Williams: "I've been investing for over 14 years"

Williams at the 66th GRAMMY Awards Pre-GRAMMY Gala

Serena Williams explained to her fans in a TikTok video in March about how her side hustle as an investor started. The 42-year-old has admittedly been backing entrepreneurs for the last 14 years.

"So I invest in a lot of companies, early companies, so think early stage, where companies have just started," Serena Williams said in the TikTok video. "And, I've always done this, I've actually been investing for over 14 years. Just been an entrepreneur, while I was playing tennis... it was really important for me to do that."

She also revealed that she had invested in nearly 85 companies, of which 14 had attained unicorn status.

"So, in my personal portfolio, I have invested in over 85 companies, maybe? Also, 14 are unicorn and a few decacorns," she added.