Blueprint Capital’s Power100 Pushes Back on DEI Rollback in Finance
CNBC reported Tuesday that Blueprint Capital’s third annual Power100 gathering took on a sharply defiant tone this year. The event convened diverse leaders in finance to push back against the DEI rollback reshaping corporate America.
Power100 Challenges a Shifting Narrative
The Beverly Hills event ran alongside the Milken Institute Global Conference in late April. Blueprint Capital CEO Jacob Walthour framed the gathering’s mission in direct terms. He told CNBC that success in finance has been redefined over the past year in ways that misrepresent the contributions of women and people of color. His co-founded Power100 platform now draws hundreds of alternative capital managers and investors.
The meeting did not mention President Donald Trump by name. Still, attendees made clear his policies were front of mind throughout discussions. Walthour identified the broader DEI rollback as one of two macro forces reshaping alternative asset management. He named the accelerating AI revolution as the other.
A Stark Gap in Asset Management
The numbers behind the gathering’s urgency are significant. A 2025 Government Accountability Office report found that minority- and women-owned firms control just 1.4% of roughly $82 trillion in U.S. assets under management. That figure anchored much of the weekend’s conversation about access and capital allocation.
Shundrawn Thomas, founder of the Copia Group investment firm, attended for the first time this year. He told CNBC that recent political arguments have falsely implied unqualified capital was flowing toward diverse managers. He said the practical result has been a measurable drop in funding to emerging and diverse firms. His message to peers was blunt: outside help is not arriving, so industry participants must drive change themselves.
Background: From Conference Sidebar to Standalone Destination
Power100 launched in 2024 as a lower-cost alternative to Milken’s own conference, where registration starts at $25,000. Co-founders included Vista Equity Partners’ Robert F. Smith and Churchill Asset Management’s Ken Kencel, among other senior finance figures. The event has since expanded into a full weekend of panels, networking sessions, and a formal dinner.
This year’s dinner featured Carlyle Group co-chairman David Rubenstein and former Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris argued that equal capacity to compete cannot be assumed and that addressing systemic disparities is central to fulfilling capitalism’s promise, CNBC reported.
Also Read: Trump’s Executive Orders on DEI: What They Mean for Corporate America
