Meet our speakers...

Nicolas Aguzin Managing Director, Chairman of Latin America JPMorgan

Mr. Aguzin joined JPMorgan in 1990 as a financial analyst.  In mid 1990, he moved  to  JP  Morgan's Buenos Aires office where he served as the coverage banker  for several Argentine clients.  In 1991, he moved back to New York, where  he worked in the Corporate Finance Services group focusing primarily on  cross  border  mergers  and acquisitions for U.S. clients. In 1992, Mr. Aguzin  returned  to  the  Buenos  Aires  Investment  Banking unit where he participated  in  several  privatizations,  capital  markets  and  advisory transactions.  In  1996, he moved to the Mergers and Acquisitions Group in New York, with  primary  responsibility  for  the  Latin America Consumer Industry  Group.  In  2000, Mr. Aguzin was appointed Managing Director and Head of the Latin America Mergers & Acquisitions group. In 2002, Mr. Aguzin was  appointed Head of Latin America Investment Banking Advisory.  In 2005, Mr.  Aguzin  was  appointed  Chairman of Latin American region with general responsibilities  for overseeing all of the bank's activities in the region. During  the  last  17 years at JPMorgan, Mr. Aguzin advised on many of the transformational transactions and financings that took place in the region. Mr.  Aguzin  graduated in 1989 from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania  with a B.S. degree in Economics. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Americas Society and the Council of the Americas.

Cate Ambrose Executive Director & President Latin American Venture Capital Association

Cate Ambrose is President and Executive Director of the Latin American Venture Capital Association (LAVCA), a non-profit membership organization dedicated to promoting the growth of the private equity and venture capital industry in Latin America and the Caribbean. LAVCA initiatives include the annual Scorecard on the PE/VC Environment in Latin America, a corporate governance toolkit for family-owned businesses, research in collaboration with the Wharton School, and joint programs with the Mexican Private Equity Association and the Brazilian Venture Capital Association. Prior to joining LAVCA in September 2007, Ms Ambrose was Chief of Advocacy for the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, a United Nations initiative co-chaired by Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto and former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, where she directed research projects on business regulation and property rights in Mexico, Brazil, Guatemala, India, Kenya and Tanzania. Until 2005, Ms Ambrose was Executive Director of Programs at The Economist, where she founded the first industry gathering on private equity investment in Latin America, and chaired annual roundtables with the Presidents of Mexico and Colombia. Ms Ambrose began her career as a journalist in Spain. She holds an MPA in International Economic Policy from Columbia University, and received her BA in Latin American studies from St Lawrence University and the University of Madrid.

Claudia Arango Senior Vice President AIG Capital Partners

Ms. Arango joined AIG Capital Partners in 1998 and has been responsible for sourcing, due diligence, execution, and monitoring of investments for several AIG-sponsored private equity funds, focusing primarily on Latin America.  Ms. Arango serves on the Board of Directors for portfolio companies including Jumbo Retail Argentina S.A. and Falcon Farms. Ms. Arango has ten years of private equity experience. Prior to joining AIGCP, Ms. Arango was an Investment Banking Director at Fiduciaria del Estado, where she focused on fundraising and structuring transactions primarily for infrastructure projects in Colombia.  Ms. Arango received an MS in Finance from the University of Maryland, and a master’s degree in Finance and a BS in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia.

Jesus Arguelles Investment Officer California Public Employees Retirement System

Jesús S. Argüelles is an Investment Officer III in the CalPERS Alternative Investment Management (AIM) Program. CalPERS is the United States’ largest public pension fund, with over $250 billion in overall assets and over $40 billion in private equity exposure.  His responsibilities include sourcing, analyzing, negotiating, and monitoring venture capital and private equity investment opportunities. He manages a portfolio of domestic and international venture, buyout, and special situations partnerships. In addition, Jesús is responsible for managing the non-Asian emerging markets investment activities for the AIM Program. Prior to joining the AIM Program in 2002, Jesús spent a short stint at The Carlyle Group in Washington, D.C.  He earned his Bachelor of Science in Managerial Economics from the University of California, Davis and completed a Hispanic Studies Program from La Universidad de Carlos III in Madrid, Spain.

Andreas Beroutsos Director McKinsey & Company

Andreas Beroutsos is a Director (senior partner) in McKinsey & Company’s New York office.  He co-founded, and has led for years, our global practice advising Private Equity (PE) clients.  He is also one of the senior leaders of our Financial Institutions practice, focusing on Asset/Wealth Management, Insurance and Wholesale Banking.  In his sixteen years with the Firm, Mr. Beroutsos has served clients in the United States, Europe, Latin America and East Asia on strategy, organization, operations and M&A.  In Private Equity, Mr. Beroutsos advises several of the world’s most successful PE, Hedge Fund and Real Estate direct investors (GPs) and fund-of fund investors (LPs) – both independent and financial institution-affiliated – on their overall strategies, investment approach, organization configuration, governance, marketing/business development, succession planning and people and compensation processes.  He also advises U.S. and global PE investors on sourcing transactions, evaluating specific deal opportunities, enhancing the value of their portfolio, and successfully exiting their investments.  Besides service to individual firms, Mr. Beroutsos has been working closely with PE industry associations in both developed and emerging markets on organizational and industry issues.  His PE work has spanned the Americas, Europe and East Asia/Japan.  In the Financial Institutions practice, Mr. Beroutsos has served leading asset managers and private wealth advisors, banks, property & casualty (P&C) insurers and reinsurers.

 

Roger Berry Partner Climate Change Capital Limited

In 2002, Roger Berry co-founded Liberty Global Partners, a placement firm focused exclusively on private equity managers in emerging markets. Liberty Global has helped to raise significant commitments from institutional investors, and has played a lead role in the creation of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association. Liberty Global has represented client funds in Africa, Brazil, Central America, Southeast Asia, Central and Eastern Europe and Russia. Prior to the founding of Liberty Global, Roger had started and led the Emerging Markets Practice for the consulting group GPC International. Roger’s clients included AT&T Wireless, Agilent Technologies, Ionics Incorporated, Lifespan International, Stone & Webster Engineering & Construction, POSCO, Hyundai, Xrosstech, MCG Global, the AIG Emerging Markets Partnership and others. Roger successfully co-led an advisory team for POSCO that facilitated a joint venture with Gale International and Morgan Stanley-- the first major international real estate joint venture in Korea. Roger is a regular contributor of feature articles on private equity for the Emerging Markets Private Equity Quarterly Review, the official publication of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association. Roger is a graduate of Harvard University.

Jeronimo Bosch Managing Director Pegasus Capital

Managing Director of Pegasus Capital Director of Freddo, Farmcity, Pegasus Real Estate Fund, Core Security Technologies Responsible for private equity and real estate fund raising, deal execution and monitoring of portfolio companies. Over 12  years of experience in private equity investing, mergers and acquisitions, financial restructuring, corporate finance and real estate in Latin America and the US. Previous experience with Morgan Stanley private equity and Salomon Brothers investment banking BS in Economics from Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Erik Carlberg Managing Director Alta Growth Capital

Guido Cerini Managing Director, Head of Natural Resources, Latin America JPMorgan

Mr. Cerini is a Managing Director in JPMorgan's Investment Banking Group in New York.  He is responsible for the activities of the firm in the Natural Resources  sector in Latin America. Since joining JPMorgan he has worked on the  origination  and  execution  of  advisory,  restructuring  and capital raising  assignments  in  the  electricity,  oil and gas, petrochemical and water sectors of United States, Europe and Latin America. Prior  to  JPMorgan, Mr. Cerini worked in the Structured Finance Department of  UBS  in  Europe.   Prior  to  that, Mr. Cerini worked for the Strategic Planning Department of Banco Quilmes in Argentina. Mr.  Cerini  holds  a  Masters  in  Business  Administration in Finance and Strategic   Planning  from  the  University  of  Michigan  and  degrees  in Accounting  and  Business  Administration  from  the Catholic University of Argentina.

 

Luis Chicani President BenCorp

Luís Chicani is a different entrepreneur. After graduating from Dental School at Universidade de São Paulo, already married with 1 child, he founded DentalCorp with only US$ 600 that became the #4 Dental Insurance Company in Brazil and was sold in 2007 for around US$ 15 Millions to Odontoprev, who went for an IPO of more than US$ 250 Millions. He was selected an Endeavor Entrepreneur (Class 2003) and One of New Entrepreneurs In Brazil (VOCE S/A Magazine). DentalCorp became a Harvard Study case in 2004. Now Luís is launching benCorp, an strategic consultancy and manager of corporate benefits, focusing on reducing cost, using an IT platform and Health Promotion, resulting in healthier people, with more productivity and a better quality of life in the companies. Chicani has a business post graduation at FGV and an MBA in Health Plans management. He runs 5 Marathons and speaks Portuguese, English and Spanish.

Geoffrey David Cleaver Senior Vice President - Private Equity Banco ABN Ambro Real S.A. Patrick Funaro

Mr.  Cleaver  is  responsible  for  Private Equity at ABN AMRO in Brazil, where  he  runs  InfraBrasil  a  infrastructure Private Equity fund.  Mr.  Cleaver  joined  ABN  AMRO  in  2004,  after eight years at Latin America Enterprise  Fund  (LAEF),  a Private Equity fund manager focused in Latin America. In this firm, he was co-responsible for the investment portfolio of  the  funds LAEF I and LAEF II in Brazil. Prior to that, he worked for ten  years  in  Investment  Banking  and  Private Equity at JPMorgan. Mr. Cleaver  has  a  bachelor  degree  in Business Administration from FAAP – Fundação Armando Álvares Penteado in São Paulo.

Daniel Cordova Cayo Director El Instituto Invertir (Peru)

Daniel Cordova, earned a Ph.D. in Economics at the Grenoble University, France. His Ph.D. thesis was a comparative study of the South Korean and Peruvian paths of development. He has held important positions both in government and in the private sector. He has worked for an important mining company and use to be Chairman of a Bank innovating on corporate governance reforms in both cases. He was the first Chairman of the Board of Procapitales, a business association to promote the Peruvian Capital Market and the first CEO of Comexperu a business association to promote free trade in Peru. Currently he is Dean of the School of Economics of the Peruvian University of Applied Sciences (UPC), Chairman of the Invertir Institute to promote entrepreneurship and Venture Capital in Peru and member of the Board of three Peruvian companies. Mr. Cordova publishes articles at El Comercio, the main Peruvian newspaper.

Matthew Cole Partner North Bay Equity Partners

Matthew Cole is a Partner at North Bay Equity Partners, a financial advisory and venture capital firm focused on private equity investments in Latin America.  Prior to co-founding North Bay, Matt worked with Texas Pacific Group and J.P. Morgan.  He has more than 15 years of investment banking and private equity investing Latin America, and has lived and worked in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Mexico.  Matt graduated from Brown University in 1992 and resides in Miami, Florida.

Jaime Corredor Chairman and shareholder UmbralCapital
Jaime Corredor is currently Chairman and shareholder of UmbralCapital and Chairman and stockholder of Hipotecaria Casa Mexicana (a Mexican mortgage bank); Board Member of Grupo FERROMEX (a Mexican railway) and of Grupo Financiero MONEX (the largest foreign exchange trader in Mexico).

 

Alexandre Cruz Partner L2R Investments

Alexandre M. M. Cruz is a partner at L2R Investments, a Brazilian investment consultancy and management firm that provides institutional investors with exposure to premium private equity funds. Mr. Cruz is also president and founder of NeoIntelligence Corporate Advice, a consulting company which was responsible for advising and leading more than 20 M&As in Brazil, assisting financial transactions and supporting more than 100 long-term investments in Brazil, mainly in bioenergy, IT, entertainment and infrastructure. Mr. Cruz has also accumulated experience as a VC-backed entrepreneur. At 21, he founded an e-gift certificates company that received investment from CSFB. After that, he worked for three years at the Corporate Finance Department of Ernst & Young, participating of several PE/VC-related transactions on deal selection, business planning, restructuring, fundraising, negotiation, exiting, monitoring and coaching. Mr. Cruz holds a bachelor degree in economics from University of Sao Paulo and a Juris Doctor degree from Catholic University of Sao Paulo. He has also a post-graduate degree in International Business from Fundação Getulio Vargas. He is a professor of entrepreneurship and business planning at Anhembi-Morumbi University – Laureat Group and at SENAC.

Tim Cunningham President and Co-Founder Touchstone Group
Mr. Cunningham is President and Co-Founder of Touchstone Group, LLC, a financial services firm that raises institutional capital for hedge fund and private equity managers in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australasia. Mr. Cunningham co-founded and managed a group of venture capital funds headquartered in Philadelphia.

Marcus Dantus CEO Innovamedica

Marcus has worked in IT ventures for the past 12 years. His experience includes building the first regional Internet community in Mexico (Mexico.com) being a pioneer in E-commerce in Latin America (Latin American Telecom), deploying the first Voice Portal in the Hispanic world (Simitel) and achieving the first spinoff in Silicon Valley from a Mexican technology developer (Peerant). Mr. Dantus has now crossed over to the life sciences space as part of Innovamedica, a research and development firm specializing in medical devices. Marcus is a recognized entrepreneur in Mexico and the US and has received multiple awards including Intel’s Technology prize in 2004 and a recognition from Mexico’s president Vicente Fox as one of the top entrepreneurial projects in the country. He was selected an Endeavor entrepreneur in 2003 and continues to be very active in the organization.  Mr. Dantus holds a BA in communications from the University of Pennsylvania, (1989) and a BA in Business Technology (honors) from the ITESM.

Peter Darrow Partner Mayer Brown

Peter V. Darrow is a partner in the New York Office of Mayer Brown LLP. Mr. Darrow is co-head of the Firm’s Latin American practice, and advises issuers and underwriters in connection with offerings of debt and equity securities in the international capital markets, and also specializes in advising companies and financial institutions in connection with private equity investments and structured financing. He has authored and co-authored a number of publications, including US Equity markets for Foreign Issuers: Public Offerings and Rule 144A Placements of American Depositary Receipts, Merrill Corporation publication (2008); “The US High Yield Bond Market: Opportunities for Foreign Issuers”, Mayer Brown publication (2005); “Restructuring Corporate Debt in Latin America”, and “How to Restructure Debt in Latin America”, International Financial Law Review (2003); “Private Equity Investments in Latin America”, Latin American Law and Business Report (2000); “Restructuring Strategies for Mexican Eurobond Debt,” Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business (1995), and “Financing Infrastructure Projects in the International Capital Markets: The Tribasa Toll Road Trust,” The Financier (1994). Mr. Darrow graduated from Columbia College in 1972. He received a B. Phil. from Trinity College, Oxford, in 1979, and graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1978.

Russell Deakin Partner CRP Companhia De Participaceos

Mr. Deakin is a Partner of CRP, the oldest private equity/venture capital firm in Brazil, and one of CRP´s Investment Officer. As part of CRP´s team since 2001, he has recently moved to Miami, Florida to set up CRP America’s office and is spearheading fund raising activities for the CRP VII, a Brazilian private equity middle market growth fund, as well as international divestment of existing portfolio companies. Prior to his current role, Mr. Deakin also has substantial international experience in other sectors of alternative assets, real estate, where he was a CFO and partner for 11 years for a Brazilian real estate developer, as well as in capital markets with Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch in London. A dual British and American citizen, Mr. Deakin is an economist from Tufts and Oxford University with a MBA in International Marketing and Finances from the Anderson Graduate School, UCLA.

Pedro Paulo de Campos Managing Partner Angra Partners
Managing partner of Angra Partners, a Brazilian private equity and specialized financial services company, associated with Monitor Capital from Cambridge, USA. Vice-chairman of the Board of Brasil Telecom S/A, and board member of Telemig Participações S/A,  Petropar S/A, Tele Norte Celular Participações S/A and Impacta S/A

Dirk Donath Managing Director Eton Park Capital Management

Dirk Donath joined Eton Park Capital Management as Managing Director, responsible for Eton Park's private equity and illiquid investments in Emerging Markets. Eton Park is a global, multi-disciplinary investment fund that initiated activities in November 2004. With offices in New York and London, the firm has a capital base of over US$5.5 billion. Prior to joining Eton Park, Dirk was a Founding Partner and Managing Director of Pegasus Capital. Pegasus is a principal investment firm focused on distressed private equity, turnarounds and restructurings in Latin America. Before founding Pegasus, Dirk was a Partner of McKinsey & Company and was based out of the Mercosur Office in Buenos Aires. Dirk was head of McKinsey's Latin American Consumer Goods and Retail Practice and also a leader of the Latin American Corporate Finance and Strategy Practice. He originally joined McKinsey in 1988 and previously worked in the New York, London and Madrid offices. Dirk is also the Founder and Creator of FarmaCity, the leading retail pharmacy chain in Argentina with over 78 outlets, revenues of $700 million and over 2,200 employees. At FarmaCity, Dirk was Chairman and served on the Board of Directors. Dirk is also on the Board of the Latin American Advisor of the Inter-American Dialogue. Dirk graduated with honors from Yale University with a BA in Economics (with distinction) and studied international relations at Oxford University in England. He received an MBA degree from Harvard Business School.

William “Dean” Donovan Managing Director Columbia Equity Partners

Katherine Downs Director Emp Global

Katherine A. Downs is a Partner at EMP Latin America and a Managing Director at EMP Global.  Ms. Downs joined EMP Global in 1997 where she has worked on investments in transportation, power, water and sanitation, and natural resources.  She is currently a director of five of LAIF's portfolio companies and affiliates.  Prior to joining EMP Global, Ms. Downs worked for ten years at the private placement group of the Prudential Insurance Company of America, from 1986 to 1991 making senior and mezzanine loans and equity investments in US and Mexican companies and from 1992 to 1995 heading a team responsible for credit-backed real estate investments.  During 1996 and 1997, she worked in project development at a private equity firm in Lima, Peru.  Ms. Downs has also been an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) where she taught Latin American project finance.  Ms. Downs holds a BA from Wesleyan University, a JD from Boston University Law School, a MBA from Yale University School of Management, and a MIPP in Latin American Studies from Johns Hopkins SAIS.  She also holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation.

 

Stephen Dreskin Managing Director Touchstone Group

Stephen B. Dreskin is a Managing Director of Touchstone Group, LLC.  Steve has over 20 years alternative investment, equities research, consulting and other professional experience.  Before joining Touchstone, Steve was the founding principal of a hedge fund marketing firm, which has raised offshore capital for U.S. managers.  Prior to that, he held various investment-related positions specializing in Latin American financial services at DLJ, HSBC, Oppenheimer, and Deloitte & Touche.  Steve earned an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Lauder Institute), as well as an MA in International Studies and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania.

Eduardo Elejalde Founding Partner Latin American Enterprise Fund Managers

Eduardo Elejalde is a Founding Partner of Latin America Enterprise Fund Managers, L.L.C. (“LAEFM”) a private equity fund manager in Latin America since 1994.  He is a member of the board of directors of LAEFM and of the investment committees of the funds that it manages (LAEF I and LAEF II; US$410 millions).  He is also a member of the board of directors of various companies in which such funds have invested and of the Latin America Enterprise Fixed Income Fund (US$ 34 million).  Recently, he was elected Chairman of the Board of the Latin American Venture Capital Association (“LAVCA”). Mr. Elejalde is President of LAEFM Colombia Ltda., a subsidiary of LAEFM and the manager of the Colombian Investment in Hydrocarbons Fund, based in Bogotá.  This fund is currently operating and has committed resources of approximately US$62 million. Mr. Elejalde started his career at the World Bank in 1972 and was Division Chief of Petroleum Projects for Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean when he left in 1982 to work in Wall Street, where his 12 years experience as an investment banker includes transactions in Asia, Latin America and the United States.

Javier Escorriola Regional Director, Latin America Norfund
Javier Escorriola has 12 year of financial experience of which 10 have been in private equity with Actis based in Costa Rica, London, and Miami.  He recently joined Norfund, as regional director for Latin America.  He has a Masters of Money banking and finance from Sheffield University in the UK, and a BBA and a Economics degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

Patrice Etlin Partner Advent International

Patrice Etlin joined Advent in 1997 and started the firm’s investment activities in Brazil. He has 13 years of private equity experience. From 1994 to 1997, Patrice was a partner at International Venture Partners in São Paulo, where he was responsible for the overall operation of a media and communications fund focused on Brazil. Previously, he spent five years with Matra Marconi Space, initially as a systems engineer on a project to develop a European military observation satellite. In 1990, he was promoted to general representative for Brazil, in charge of setting up a private telecommunications satellite system providing services to Mercosul countries.

Patrick Funaro Chief Executive Officer Bioenergy Development Fund
Manager of the BIOENERGY DEVELOPMENT FUND, a Private Equity Fund investing in Bio-Energy mainly in Brazil Partner and Chief Executive Officer.

Susana Garcia-Robles Senior Investment Officer Multilateral Investment Fund

SUSANA GARCÍA-ROBLES has Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Philosophy and Education from the Universidad Católica Argentina, and a Master's Degree in International Economic Policy from Columbia University in New York. She has worked at the Multilateral Investment Fund / MIF of the Inter-American Development Bank since 1999. Her current position is Senior Investment Officer in charge of MIF Venture Capital Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean, being directly responsible for venture capital deal origination and monitoring in Argentina, Brazil, Central America, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay. She also leads the MIF’s microfinance activities for Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. Mrs. García-Robles serves on several boards of directors and investment committees of Latin American venture capital funds, and is frequently invited to speak on venture capital and microfinance issues in Latin America. Since 1999, she has been working with local partners to improve the business climate for venture capital and to promote it through MIF-sponsored technical assistance programs in Brazil, Central America, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.

Peter Getsinger Managing Partner Nexstar Capital Partners, LLC

Peter Getsinger has been involved in international business for 30 years and has 16 years experience in Latin America. Peter founded Nexstar Capital Partners in March 2004 and has primary responsibility for investing and managing the assets of the Fund as well as managing the activities and operations of Nexstar.  Prior to forming Nexstar, he was head of global investment banking for Latin America at Deutsche Bank. He held the same role at Bankers Trust prior to its merger with Deutsche Bank, where his responsibilities included head of global project finance and international finance. Previously, he served as senior vice president at Lehman Brothers, where he established Lehman’s fixed income origination business in Latin America. His prior position at Lehman was head of fixed income sales in London for the UK, Europe, and the Middle East. Prior to this, Peter was with Smith Barney in London, where he managed the fixed income sales effort and the international fixed income asset management business in Europe. Peter currently serves as a board director for Electro Sur Medio (Peru) and previously served on the board of Emdersa (Argentina).  He graduated from Williams College with a BA in American Civilization.

Margaret Gibson, P.C. Partner Kirkland & Ellis LLP

Meg Gibson is a partner in Kirkland's corporate group concentrating in private equity and mezzanine investments, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts and fund formations.  She principally represents funds, corporations, bank holding company subsidiaries and other financial institutions in structuring, negotiating and documenting complex transactions. Her clients include Bank of America Corporation, Banc of America Capital Investors, Black & Veatch Company, CHANNEL Medical Partners, CIVC Partners, Convergent Capital Management, Frontenac Company, Maxcom Telecomunicaciones, Prairie Capital, Royal Bank of Scotland, Seaport Capital and other private equity funds and institutions.  She has extensive experience representing U.S. investors investing throughout Latin America. Meg has been a guest speaker at numerous conferences on private equity in Latin America, including Private Investment in Latin America, Investing in Latin American Private Equity, the Latin American Private Equity Forum and the Latin American Private Equity Conference. She has also been a moderator for several years at the Private Equity Conference hosted by the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Meg graduated cum laude from Northwestern University School of Law in 1987, and received her undergraduate degree from The University of Michigan in 1984, with class honors.

Richard Gilmore President/CEO GIC Group

Mr. Gilmore is the founder of GIC and currently oversees GIC consulting, trade and financial service divisions. He has a Ph.D. in trade economics from the Graduate Institute of International Studies/ Fulbright Program in Geneva, Switzerland, an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, and a B.A. from Columbia College. He has language proficiency in French and German. Mr. Gilmore serves on a number of non-profit boards and Advisory Boards including Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Conservation Law Foundation, and The Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington. He is a Trustee of Bayer CropScience and Syngenta, Member of the Executive Advisory Board of Novoplant, GmBH and a member of the International Advisory Board of NeSst, a non-profit financial and training institution for civil society organizations. Mr. Gilmore has been adviser to the U.S. government for agricultural trade policy, has written books and numerous articles, and has served as commodity commentator for CNN. As chief officer of GIC Financial Services, Mr. Gilmore is responsible for GIC private placements, funds under launch, joint ventures and new strategic alliances. He supervises GIC's network of affiliates and partner offices worldwide which include Latin America, Europe, and China.

Lawrence Goodman Partner Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle, LLP

Lawrence Goodman has been with the Firm since 1987 and is a partner in the International Corporate Department, member of the Firm’s Policy Committee and Chair of the Private Equity and Venture Capital Practice Group. Mr. Goodman focuses on private equity, securities, mergers and acquisitions and is experienced in general corporate/international matters. Mr. Goodman’s private equity practice covers a wide range of services, assisting entrepreneurs, start-ups, fundless sponsors and both foreign and domestic private equity and venture capital funds investing in portfolio companies worldwide. These investments include mezzanine debt, convertible securities and preferred and common equity, and can take the form of minority investments or acquisition of the entire enterprise. Mr. Goodman’s securities practice includes representing U.S. and foreign issuers/borrowers and underwriters/lenders in a wide variety of corporate finance transactions, with a particular focus on representing Latin American, European and Australian issuers. He also counsels companies, boards of directors and board committees on corporate governance, fiduciary duties and similar issues. Mr. Goodman’s merger and acquisition clients consist of public and private operating companies undertaking uncontested domestic and cross-border stock or asset purchases. Mr. Goodman has represented clients operating in various industries including nanotechnology and biotechnology/life sciences, telecommunications, commodity trading and mining, shipping and transportation, food and beverage, hotel and lodging, and manufacturing, among others. Mr. Goodman has spoken at numerous conferences and panels on various private equity and securities topics, among others. He is admitted to the Bar of the State of New York. Mr. Goodman currently serves on the board of directors of VIP Incorporated, FHP Manufacturing Company and Bay State Cable Ties, LLC. He also serves on the corporate advisory board of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s DNA Learning Center.

Steve Kargman President Kargman Associates

Steven T. Kargman is the President of Kargman Associates, a New York City-based strategic advisory firm specializing in international restructuring, cross-border insolvency, distressed debt and non-performing loan situations, with a special focus on the emerging markets.  The firm also advises clients involved in the emerging markets in the areas of project finance/infrastructure development (including PPPs), trade finance, foreign direct investment, privatizations and private equity. He was formerly Lead Attorney with the Export-Import Bank of the United States in Washington, D.C. and General Counsel of the New York State Financial Control Board, the financial oversight agency for New York City.   He has worked on a number of the largest and most complex restructuring transactions in the emerging markets, including the $13.9 billion Asia Pulp & Paper debt restructuring as well as some of the other largest corporate and project finance restructuring matters in Latin America and Asia   He has served as a member of the official United States delegation for the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) project on the development of a legislative guide for insolvency law and has been an adviser to the World Bank and the U.S. Department of State on international insolvency issues. He currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Subcommittee on International Bankruptcy of the American Bar Association’s Business Bankruptcy Committee, and he serves as a member of the Board of Directors and a founding member of the International Insolvency Institute, a leading international insolvency organization. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a member of the advisory board of the Institute of Asian-Pacific Business Law.  He has lectured widely in the US and abroad on international restructuring and international finance topics, and he has also published many articles on these topics in leading professional publications.  A former Luce Scholar in Singapore, he received his B.A. with Honors and Phi Beta Kappa from Swarthmore College and his J.D. from Yale Law School, where he was an editor of The Yale Law Journal.

Brian Kim Managing Director Zephyr Management

"Brian Kim is a Managing Director of Zephyr Management, L.P., is the Chief Investment Officer for Zephyr Peacock India Fund, and oversees new business development. Mr. Kim has over 15 years of direct private equity and capital markets experience. Prior to joining Zephyr, he was a principal with CVCI, Citigroup's emerging market direct investment group.  Mr. Kim has an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan."

Maria Kozloski President JER Emerging Market Opportunities

Maria Kozloski is President of the Fund of Funds Business of the J.E. Robert Companies (JER).  Ms. Kozloski has 16 years of experience focused exclusively on the emerging markets.  Prior to joining JER in 2007, Ms. Kozloski was Manager of the Private Equity and Investment Funds Department of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, where she oversaw new fund commitments worldwide for a US$1.7 billion private equity portfolio.  She has executed over US$860 million of equity commitments to more than 50 funds in the emerging markets, and has managed relationships with fund managers in Asia, Central & Eastern Europe, the CIS countries, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.  Prior to the IFC, Ms. Kozloski was co-head of a US$1 billion private equity portfolio at the World Bank Group, investing in private equity funds in the U.S., Europe and Asia.  Ms. Kozloski has lived in Russia, during which time was Senior Investment Officer in the IFC’s Moscow office, responsible for direct investments in Russia and Eastern Europe.  Earlier in her career, she was an advisor to Poland’s Ministry of Privatization, and worked for J. P. Morgan & Co. as a Treasury Officer. Maria is a CFA and holds an MBA, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania; MA, East European Studies, Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies; and BS, Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Harry Krensky Principal Atlas Discovery Capital

Harry Krensky is a Founder and the Managing Partner of Discovery Americas Capital Partners and Discovery Americas I (a Mexican private equity fund), and serves on the Boards of Volaris (an airline) and Umbral (a real estate company).  He is a Principal and Founding Partner of Atlas Capital Management with responsibility for overseeing the firm’s risk management and business.  He is a co-founder of Discovery Capital Management, LLC.  Over the past 15 years, Mr. Krensky has managed hedge fund and private equity investments, and provided corporate finance and investment banking services in the emerging markets.  Previously, Mr. Krensky was a Director and Senior Portfolio Manager at Deutsche Bank, where he founded and managed the DB New World Fund, an emerging markets hedge fund. Prior to this, he was a Director in the emerging markets group at Bear Stearns.  Mr. Krensky has been an adjunct professor of international business at New York University's Business School.  Mr. Krensky graduated with distinction from Colby College, holds a Master's degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and earned an MBA from the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.  He has a working knowledge of Spanish.

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Senior Advisor The Rohatyn Group

Pedro-Pablo Kuczynski serves as a Senior Advisor to The Rohatyn Group.  Mr. Kuczynski has over 40 years of experience in the global financial markets.   From 2005-2006 he served as Prime Minister for the Government of Perú, after serving as Minister of Economy and Finance in 2001-2002 and 2004-2005.  He previously served as the Minister of Energy and Mines from 1980-1982.  From 1994-2001, Mr. Kuczynski was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Latin America Enterprise Fund, a private equity firm.   From 1982 to 1992, he was chairman of First Boston International and managing director of First Boston Corporation. Mr. Kuczynski began his career at the World Bank in 1961 and later was Director of the Peruvian Central Bank (1967-1969).

Mauricio Levitin Managing Director Peninsula Investments Group

Mauricio Levitin is Managing Director of Peninsula Investments Group. Peninsula is a fund focused on developing real estate projects in selected markets of Latin America. Peninsula currently has operations in Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay and is expanding into Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama. Prior to joining Peninsula, Mauricio was a management consultant with McKinsey & Co. for seven years. At McKinsey, he lead a wide range of engagements in areas such as corporate strategy, business acceleration/ turnaround and M&A across the following industries: telecom, media, internet, consumer goods/ retail, basic material and mining. With McKinsey, Mauricio also worked in various markets, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Spain, the Unites States, Uruguay and Venezuela. During the summer of his MBA, Mauricio engaged with Lehman Brothers in London as a Summer Associate in the Real Estate Investment Banking division. At Lehman, he developed M&A strategies for companies across Europe and worked on deals in Belgium, France, Germany, Spain and the UK. Mauricio earned his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and his BBA from the The Goizueta Business School of Emory University.

Duncan Littlejohn Latin American Representative Paul Capital

Duncan Littlejohn  Mr. Littlejohn is the Latin American representative of Paul Capital Partners based in Sao Paulo.  In Brazil since 1989, he has been active in principal investing, in the US and Brazil, and in corporate finance.  He was previously a partner of BPE Investimentos and its predecessor, Brasilpar, a Brazilian primary private equity fund manager whose portfolios have included companies such as Datasul, Injepet, Mobitel, Getec, Autotrac, Armco Staco and others. BPE has invested in 15 Brazilian medium sized companies with a combined enterprise value of over R$1.5 billion.  Before joining Brasilpar in 1995, he was director and President and major shareholder of AVM Auto-equipamentos Ltda, a local auto parts manufacturer and Partner of Pirelli Fintec Ltda, a financial advisory firm associated with the Pirelli Group.  He began his career in New York with the S&W Berisford (UK) Group concentrating on the coffee, cocoa and sugar business. He spent 10 years in Ecuador as CEO of  Productos Ecuatorianos (Prodec) a leading coffee and cocoa exporter. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in International Relations. He has served on the boards various portfolio companies, associations and non profit organizations.

Hernan Lopez Regional Director, Latin America NASDAQ OMX

Mr. Lopez is the Regional Director for Latin America at NASDAQ OMX since August 2007. His role is maintaining NASDAQ’s leading market position with the numerous public companies in the region. He is responsible for attracting new business, client retention, and assisting issuers with their fiduciary duties of being publicly listed. He joined NASDAQ OMX from The Bank of New York Mellon, where as a Vice-President was responsible for managing relations with Latin American corporate clients. Before joining Wall Street, Mr. Lopez practiced law in corporate, oil and gas and environmental legal issues, at the domestic and international levels; practiced in-house in Argentina, for US companies including Waste Management International and Amoco Oil Company; consulted for The World Bank, and other multilateral international institutions on issues including carbon emissions trading and finance and international environmental legal issues. Mr. Lopez holds a JD degree from the University of Buenos Aires; an LLM from Pace University and a Master's in Economics and Finance from Columbia University where he graduated in 2003.

Andre Maciel Associate JP Morgan Latin America Equity Capital Markets

Julio Marquez Managing Director, Head of Latin America, Global Emerging Markets Group

Julio Marquez is a Managing Director of Global Emerging Markets Group ("GEM") where he oversees GEM's Latin American and US Hispanic market investments. At GEM, he has overseen the completion of fund investments exceeding $1 billion in aggregate value. Prior to joining GEM in late 1999, he was a senior banker and Director of Analytics at Violy, Byorum & Partners, a leading Latin American M&A advisory firm. Mr. Marquez has 15 years of experience in international M&A, having previously worked at Wasserstein Perella, Citibank, Prudential Securities and Morgan Stanley & Co. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School (1990), an MS in systems engineering with honors from the University of Pennsylvania (1985) and a BS in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1984).  Mr. Marquez was born and raised in Mexico City.

Bernard McGuire Director, Investment Funds Group Overseas Private Investment Corporation

Since his arrival at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (“OPIC”) in 2003, Bernard has led the origination and execution of emerging markets alternative asset fund investments totalling $1.2 billion and $540 million, respectively, while managing and restructuring a $600 million global portfolio of OPIC legacy investments. His OPIC experience includes fund creation and investments in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America covering strategies such as growth equity, buyout, infrastructure, distressed debt, real estate, and asset backed securitisation. Bernard represents OPIC on numerous fund Advisory Boards.

Philip von Mehren Partner Baker & McKenzie

Philip von Mehren received his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1990, his M. Phil from Cambridge University in 1984 and his B.A. from Reed College in 1982. His practice is focused on cross-border acquisitions and dispositions, often for strategic and financial buyers, including private equity and venture capital funds. He has represented various strategic and financial purchasers in numerous U.S. LBO transactions and Latin American private equity investments. He is admitted to practice in the State of New York and in the District of Columbia. Mr. von Mehren writes and lectures extensively on issues relating to private investment, including at Harvard Law School and New York University School of Law. His publications include Cross Border Trade and Investment with Mexico: NAFTA’s New Rules of the Game (Transnational Publishers, Inc.); Mr. von Mehren was also an editor for several years of Doing Business in Mexico (Transnational Publishers, Inc.)

Juan Felipe Munoz President The Otun Group

Juan Felipe Munoz founded Otun Group, an international consultancy which provides political risk, financial and strategic advice to corporations, investment professionals and individuals with operations and investments in Latin America. Along with Cesar Gaviria, in the last two years he has helped clients to identify opportunities, arrange transactions and resolve troubled investment situations. Earlier in his career, Mr. Munoz was an associate for Banco Santander and a management consultant for Andersen Consulting. He serves as a board member at The Interamerican Dialogue, Latin America's premier center for policy analysis in Western Hemisphere affairs and has written for El Tiempo newspaper and Semana magazine. A Colombian native, he holds a MIA from Columbia University and he studied B.S. Economics at both Universidad de Los Andes and The London School of Economics.

Gerald Nowak Partner Kirkland & Ellis LLP

Jerry Nowak is a corporate partner in Kirkland's Chicago office.  He has a broad transactional practice, including capital markets transactions, M&A transactions and corporate governance matters.  His capital markets practice focuses on complex securities matters, including initial public offerings, high yield offerings, spin-offs, tender offers and investment grade debt offerings.  His M&A practice includes public and private acquisitions for private equity funds and public companies. Jerry has been a guest lecturer at The University of Chicago Law School and the The University of Chicago Graduate School of Business on accounting and international business issues and periodically speaks at legal and accounting seminars and conferences on a variety of topics.  Prior to becoming a lawyer, Jerry was an officer in the United States Air Force. Jerry received his B.A. in economic policy analysis from Michigan State University in 1986, his M.B.A. from Auburn University in 1990, and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1993.

Andres Ochoa-Bunsow Principal Baker & McKenzie, Mexico

Andrés Ochoa-Bünsow's practice focuses on corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, securities, banking, partnership law, bank lending, commercial lending and other extensions of credit, and general commercial law. He graduated from the Escuela Libre de Derecho in 1980 and obtained his Masters degree at Columbia University (USA) in 1980, and is admitted to the practice of law throughout Mexico and in the State of New York. He is fluent in Spanish and English.

Juan Pablo Pallordet Director Citigroup Venture Capital International

Mr. Pallordet is currently a Director of CVC International, where he has worked since 1999, specializing in private equity investments related to oil and gas, food and beverage, and technology. Mr. Pallordet is currently a board member of Sundance Investment, LLC, an oil and gas company in Peru, Intcomex, Inc., a Latin American distributor of computer and computer components and Avantel, S.A., a wireless telecommunications company in Colombia. Mr. Pallordet holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de Buenos Aires.

Rogerio Penalva Director Vision Brazil

Luis Perezcano Managing Partner Nafta Fund

Mr. Perezcano is a partner of Nafta Fund since its conception and formation.  He is involved in deal sourcing, analysis, due diligence and structure of investments, as well as monitoring portfolio companies.  He is also in charge of finance and administration, and investor relations. He is a director of Grupo Editorial Armonía where he chairs the executive committee and serves on the board of Pacific Star Holdings, both portfolio companies of Nafta. Prior to forming Nafta Fund, he participated in the launching of SAI's Investment Banking division, where he structured mergers and acquisitions, and raised capital for medium-sized firms. Before joining SAI, he was in charge of sales and trading of fixed income, derivatives and structured products for Grupo Financiero Serfin in the New York and Mexico City offices. He serves on the board of Mexder and Asigna, Mexico’s listed derivatives market and clearing house.  He is a founding member of the Mexican Private Equity Association, Amexcap. Luis Perezcano is a graduate of ITAM. He earned an Executive MBA in Finance from New York University's Stern School of Business. He has written and lectured on topics related to private equity and derivatives.

Erik Peterson Regional Managing Partner for Latin America Aureos Capital

Mr. Peterson is Aureos’ Regional Managing Partner for Latin America, where he manages the Aureos Latin America Fund (ALAF) and the Aureos Central America Fund (ACAF).  ALAF is a private equity fund targeting companies in Mexico, Central America and the Andean Region, while ACAF focuses on the Central America region.  Mr. Peterson chairs the ALAF investment committee and is a member of the Investment Committees of ACAF and the Emerge Fund. Mr. Peterson has fifteen years of experience in private equity and investment banking gained at Provident Group Limited, Bank America Robertson Stephens and Bank of America. Prior to joining Aureos, Mr. Peterson was responsible for US$150 million of Bank of America’s equity portfolio in Latin America, which was primarily invested in the financial services, forestry and energy sectors. He also advised clients on the first power privatizations in Peru and Colombia, as well as clients in the oil, gas and telecom sectors in other parts of Latin America. Mr. Peterson holds an MBA, with a concentration in Finance and Entrepreneurial Management, from the Wharton School of Business, USA, an M.A. in International Studies (LatAm) from the University of Pennsylvania, USA, and a B.A. in Economics from the University of California at Berkeley, USA.  Erik speaks fluent Spanish, having spent his childhood in Panama.

Umberto Pisoni Senior Investment Officer, Private Equity and Investment Funds Department, International Finance Corporation World Bank Group

Umberto Pisoni is a Senior Investment Officer with IFC’s Private Equity and Investment Funds Department, based in Washington, DC.  He is responsible for IFC’s portfolio and new investments in funds in Latin America, and is also responsible for IFC’s global strategy in Venture Capital. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, has built up a portfolio of investments in emerging market investment funds representing a commitment of over $1.9 billion in about 135 funds, over 80% of which are private equity. The Funds Department is IFC's center of expertise for the selection and structuring of new funds, leveraging and sharing the experience gained from its portfolio and constantly adapting best industry practices to the constraints of the different markets it operates in. Umberto has analyzed and led investments in several private equity funds, ranging from Latin America to Eastern and Central Europe. He has worked with some of the global fund managers wishing to extend their franchise to emerging markets, and also with strong local players who wanted to expand beyond their geographic horizon.  He is now responsible for the Latin America Region for IFC’s Funds Department. Prior to joining the Funds Department, Umberto worked for eight years in IFC’s Global Information and Communications Department, where he was responsible for originating, negotiating and executing investments in the telecom industry on a global basis. In particular, Umberto has overseen investments (both debt and equity/quasi-equity) in the cellular industry and in the fixed wireline industry in several countries (Brazil, El Salvador, Morocco, Lebanon, etc.).  His industry focus had been on alternative carriers and networking infrastructure service providers, such as broadband last mile and fiber optic backbone projects. Umberto holds a B.A. in Economics and Finance from Bocconi University in Milan, Italy, and an MBA from MIT’s Sloan School of Management in Cambridge, Massachusets.

Claudia Prado Principal Trench Rossi E Watanabe Advogados

Claudia F. Prado graduated from the University of São Paulo Law School in 1984 and obtained a Masters degree at the Southern Methodist University (USA) in 1986. Her areas of practice include deals involving acquisition and sale of companies and joint ventures, cross-border acquisitions and dispositions, often for strategic and financial buyers, including private equity and venture capital funds. She also advises in general corporate matters and corporate restructure and regulatory matters in capital market. Languages: Portuguese, English and Spanish.

German Pugliese EVP Business Development Technisys

Leonardo L. Ribeiro Partner L2R Investments

Leonardo L. Ribeiro is a partner at L2R Investments, a Brazilian investment consultancy and management firm that provides institutional investors with exposure to premium private equity funds.Prior to that, Mr. Ribeiro was a researcher at the Center for Private Equity Research at Fundação Getulio Vargas where he conducted the Census of Private Equity and authored more than 14 publications, including the book Private Equity and Venture Capital in Brazil.Mr. Ribeiro has more than five years of private equity and consulting experience, including: advising the entry of a US$100 bn U.S. insurance company in Europe, assisting financial transactions and acquisitions, conducting strategic planning and forecasting business opportunities. In the social field, he advised the development of a VC fund for cooperatives and an endowment fund for forest protection.Mr. Ribeiro holds a bachelor and a MSc. degree in business from University of Sao Paulo with honors. He was also awarded the Ruy Leme and the National Association of Investment Banks prizes for his works in private equity. He did part of his studies in France, including the MBA at ESSEC and a specialization in Corporate Finance at Toulouse Business School.

Juan Carlos Rojas Partner Mesoamerica

Juan Carlos Rojas joined Mesoamerica in 1996 when the firm was founded.    Mesoamerica, based in Costa Rica and with over 30 professionals from around the world, is the leading private equity, M&A and strategy consulting firm in Central America.   Juan Carlos has focused mainly in the private equity practice, having directed or participated in over $250M of direct equity investments in companies with firm values over $1 billion, in industries such as telecommunications, cable TV, renewable energy and construction services.  Juan Carlos holds a master’s degree from Georgetown University.

Carlos Alberto Rosa Investment Officer FUNCEF

Carlos Alberto Rosa, is graduated in Mechanical Engineering by UNESP, and Masters in Public Affairs and Government Policy by Getúlio Vargas Foundation - FGV. Actually is the Participation Manager (Investment Officer) at FUNCEF – Fundação dos Economiários Federais, and member of the Board of Directors at Telemig Celular S.A. and Telemig Celular Participações S.A. Is also member of Investments Committee at several private equity funds. Between 2001 and 2004 was Institutional Investors Coordinator at Caixa Econômica Federal (Federal Bank). It was member of Board of Directors at Brasil Ferrovias S.A. and member of Audit Committee at Brasil Telecom S.A. For 1998 until 2000 was consultant at GV CONSULT and UNDP – United Nations Development Program, in the project that implemented the Bolsa Eletrônica de Compras (Electronic Buying System) at São Paulo State Government. In 999 was “visiting scholar” by Ford Foundation at University of Texas at Austin. Between 1985 and 1996 worked at Banco do Estado de São Paulo.