Latin America Business Forum 2010
Defying the obstacles to become a new economic power
London Business School held its 5th annual Latin America Business Forum on Saturday 22 May 2010, building on the success of the previous events and the growing interest in the region. Over its five years, the Forum has quickly become one of the most important events for Latin America in Europe.
The Forum provides a platform for business leaders, London Business School alumni, faculty and students to share their perspectives on current business issues for Latin America.
The Forum, titled “Defying the obstacles to become a new economic power”, was hosted at the London Business School campus next to Regent’s Park in Central London and attracted more than 220 attendees, who were engaged in a full day of insightful presentations, interactive discussions and panels with some of the best business names in the region. The event offered a unique environment to discuss relevant challenges for Latin America and gave the attendees great networking opportunities throughout the day.
Many of the speakers travelled from their respective home countries in Latin America for the event and conveyed a valuable perspective on how to make the most out of the relationships that exist between Latin America and Europe from a business point of view. Speakers led discussions on up-to-date topics pertaining to various sectors in Latin America such as banking, entrepreneurship, internationalisation, strategy execution and private equity. Among the speakers were: Emilson Alonso, CEO of Latin America and the Caribbean for HSBC; Damian Scokin, CEO of LAN International; Manuel Santos Uribelarrea, CEO of MSU; Fernando Borges, Managing Director and Head of South America Buyout at Carlyle Group; Paulo Fernandes, Director for McKinsey & Company, Sao Paulo Office; and Alfonso Prat-Gay, former President of the Central Bank of Argentina.
In his keynote address, Mr. Emilson Alonso, shared with the audience his insights on how the banking sector in the region is well-capitalised in comparison to the developed world and how the low banking penetration in the region represents an attractive opportunity for strong growth in the sector. Furthermore, he stated “Current trends in Latin America show a shift toward macroeconomic prudence and strengthened regulatory policies” and that “Populism and market unfriendly policies appear to be losing popularity in the region”.
Following the first presentation, the discussions shifted towards entrepreneurship and the requirements needed to turn a family business into a multinational organisation. Manuel Santos Uribelarrea, Founder and CEO of MSU, one of the largest agri-business players in the region, was very inspiring and offered his alternate views on how to access new sources of capital and develop partnerships on the global arena. He left the audience the following message, “If you can dream it, you can do it”, from the words of Walt Disney.
Other speakers, such as Ricardo Mattos, Managing Director for Grupo Modelo in the EMEA Region, and Damian Scokin, CEO of LAN International engaged in an interactive panel moderated by Paulo Fernandes from McKinsey & Company, where they discussed the strategies that regional players need to execute in order to expand beyond their local markets in their effort to become not only regional champions, but global leaders in their sectors.
Fernando Borges, Managing Director from The Carlyle Group in South America shared his views on how private equity firms are approaching the new opportunities in the region and how the combination of global practices combined with a local perspective can lead to successful investments. He also discussed how the regional demographics will continue to drive higher economic output and how the growing middle class will continue to drive consumption, investment and growth. He stated: “The institutions of these countries have reached maturity, giving potential investors in these economies an intangible, but invaluable, asset: predictability.”
Alfonso Prat-Gay, former President of the Central Bank of Argentina and Congressman shared experiences from his time as the head of the Central Bank, but most importantly offered his view on how rising sovereign debts in most developed countries will have an unprecedented impact in the global business environment, comparing the current situation with Argentina’s default in 2001. He was positive about opportunities in Latin America and encouraged the MBA students at London Business School to return to the region and take an active role in strengthening the local government institutions in order to break-open the potential in the region.
The 5th Latin America Business Forum was a great success. Attendees were very impressed with the calibre and variety of questions posed during the discussions, as well as the open and frank statements made by the speakers. Everyone, speakers, attendees, and organisers, left the forum more educated and more optimistic about the future prospects of Latin American growth and business opportunities.
Organised by the London Business School Latin America Club, the Latin American Business Forum is an annual event designed to bring together the leading business people, politicians, and academics to debate and promote the global significance of Latin America business.