Daniela Caserotto-Leibert

Daniela leads Cathay Innovation’s U.S. ecosystem out of San Francisco, where she focuses on building lasting partnerships between founders, corporates, and LPs, and helping portfolio companies scale globally. She joined in 2022, bringing more than 17 years of international experience across venture capital, startup operations, strategic sales, and business development.

Before Cathay Innovation, Daniela was Head of U.S. for European VC Speedinvest, where she launched its U.S. platform strategy and guided European startups on market entry. She previously held leadership roles at Area1 Security (acquired by Cloudflare) and HenkelX, and continues to mentor startups through Intel, German Accelerator, and GACC West.

Excited by innovation at the intersection of data, AI, and emerging technologies, Daniela is dedicated to building bridges between the U.S. and Europe to accelerate breakthrough ideas. She has launched products in 27+ countries, worked with governments and corporates on digital regulation, and supported founders through every stage of growth.

Daniela holds a bachelor’s degree in banking and finance and is fluent in both German and English. Outside of work, she is an avid skier, world traveler, and proud mom — a role she calls her most rewarding challenge.