Exclusive: ‘Social Spellbinder’ – Theodora Lau, Unconventional Ventures in “Swashbucklers 2020”

Here’s the thing about Theodora Lau. It was hard to find her main strength. Because … well, she has so many. Lau wears a lot of hats in our world. Start-up advisor, founder, public speaker, prolific tweeter, writer, podcaster… But in the end, we had to concur that it’s her magical ability to weave social webs and form new connections that wins the crown. Oh. And the fact that she’s also a Swashbuckling badass, disrupting the fintech space like it’s nobody’s business. That too.

We’re proud to reveal that our next rip-roaring Swashbuckler is the legendary Theodora Lau.

Creating fintech communities

You know that person who walks into a room knowing nobody, but leaves with a million new best friends, thousands of business opportunities and probably a marriage proposal? That’s Theodora Lau. She’s good with people. She brings them together. Lau’s so good at bringing people together that she even founded a thriving network and consultancy service, Unconventional Ventures. Lau has created a space for all the different finance and tech people to congregate and reimagine finance. 

“I like to joke that I ‘collect’ people along the way”, Lau explains her unique approach to working. “And as long as I am doing something meaningful with people that I respect, on things that I believe are important, then it’s work worth doing”.    

Unconventional Ventures has racked up a network of more than 100,000 participants and is renowned for it’s industry insights. Lau is well known for her role as start-up advisor, helping young companies fulfil their dreams.  

Fintech for everyone

Something else we love about Lau is how she’s dedicated her career to inclusive fintech. She uses her powers for good. Lau promotes technology which helps an aging population, not just the young and tech-savvy. Grandmas, not just instagrammers! Oohh… we went too far there. 

“I believe in the power of diversity”, Lau elaborates. “And I am super proud that through our work (our podcast, our events, and our writings), we have been able to amplify different voices in our ecosystem, and shine light on the needs of the forgotten demographics”. 

Writing up a storm 

As well as founding a successful company, Lau is also a go-to news source. She’s on top of everything. Word has it that this blazing bookworm gets through at least three newspapers a day. Which may explain why her Twitter feed is always so on fleek. Nice! 

She’s a powerful writer and tweeter in our community, unafraid to stand up to THE MAN and tell him where to stick it. We like that. You tell him Lau! She fights for gender equality and promotes diversity with the kind of passion and bravery that you’d only find in a true Swashbuckler! 

So, what does the future look like for this fantastic founder? Well, she’s writing a book! In her own words, “I’m finishing up writing my first book with my partner in-crime Bradley Leimer. Details to be shared later”. So, we can add author to that long list too. Lordy. 

Welcome to the 2020 Swashbuckling crew Theodora Lau, you’ve more than earned it!

This article was published in Swashbucklers 2020, Page 17