Gustavo Lasala

Gustavo Lasala is a member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Community Advisory Council.

Lasala serves as president and CEO of PeopleFund, a nonprofit community development financial institution and Small Business Administration lender. A seasoned leader with broad domestic and international experience, Lasala has helped organizations like ACCION Opportunity Fund, Oportun and LiftFund reach scale. He co-founded and led Listo, a financial services organization serving tens of thousands of low- to moderate income people in California through a network of technology-enhanced stores.

Since Lasala’s arrival in 2019, PeopleFund has more than doubled its balance sheet while maintaining top financial and impact performance. Under his leadership, PeopleFund embarked on three key strategic initiatives: a revolving loan fund for hard-to-reach areas in Texas; the PeopleFund Small Business Accelerator, which includes the BIPOC Accelerator (open to all) and the Military Connected Accelerator; and the Veteran Loan Fund, a collaborative effort with a growing group of CDFIs that in its first four years deployed more than $110 million and helped close to 1,500 veteran- and military spouse-owned businesses across the country. He also was the inaugural recipient of Opportunity Finance Network’s Executive Leadership Award in 2024.

Lasala holds an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin.