Joaquim Levy Explained

Joaquim Levy
Office:Chair of the Brazilian Development Bank
Term Start:7 January 2019
Term End:16 June 2019
Appointer:Jair Bolsonaro
Predecessor:Dyogo Oliveira
Successor:Gustavo Montezano
Office1:Minister of Finance
President1:Dilma Rousseff
Term Start1:1 January 2015
Term End1:21 December 2015
Predecessor1:Guido Mantega
Successor1:Nelson Barbosa
Office2:Secretary of the National Treasury
President2:Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Term Start2:1 January 2003
Term End2:27 March 2006
Predecessor2:Eduardo Guardia
Successor2:Carlos Kawall
Birth Date:17 February 1961
Birth Place:Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Alma Mater:Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
Getúlio Vargas Foundation
University of Chicago

Joaquim Vieira Ferreira Levy (born February 17, 1961) is a Brazilian economist and Brazil's former Finance Minister.[1] Levy took office on January 1, 2015, during the presidential inauguration of Dilma Rousseff's second term.[2] He also was president of the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES).

Prior to the appointment, Levy was the President of Bradesco Asset Management, a division of Bradesco, Brazil's second-largest private bank.[3]

Life and education

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Levy holds a PhD in economics from the University of Chicago (1992), a Master's in economics from Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV) (1987), and graduated in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.[4]

Career

Early career

Levy was a professor of economics at FGV in the 1990s, before joining the IMF, where he worked from 1992 to 1999. At the IMF Levy held several positions in the Western Hemisphere Department (1992), Europe I Department (1993-97), Capital Markets, and Research (1997-98). Levy was also vice-president at the Inter-American Development Bank and Finance Secretary of the State of Rio de Janeiro, during the first administration of Governor Sérgio Cabral Filho.[5]

Between 1999 and 2000, Levy was a visiting economist at the European Central Bank, having worked in the division of Capital Markets and Monetary Strategy.

In 2000 Levy was appointed Deputy Secretary of Economic Policy at Brazil's Ministry of Finance, and in 2001 became Chief Economist at Brazil's Ministry of Planning, Budget, and Management. In January 2003, he was appointed Treasury Secretary (an officer that in Brazil serves under the Minister of Finance) by president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, an office he held until 2006. He helped Brazil obtain its investment grade credit rating by checking spending and overhauling its debt structure.[6]

From 2007 to 2010 Levy served as Finance Secretary of the State of Rio de Janeiro, under Governor Sérgio Cabral.

Career in the private sector

From 2010 to November 2014, Levy was the President of Bradesco Asset Management, an asset arm of the Brazilian giant financial conglomerate Bradesco, with more than US$130 billion under management.[7] Levy left Bradesco at the invitation from Dilma Rousseff to assume the Ministry of Finance.

Minister of Finance, 2014–2015

On November 27, 2014, president Dilma Rousseff named Levy as the country's Finance Minister for her second term, replacing Guido Mantega.[8] Levy took office as Finance Minister on January 1, 2015.

World Bank, 2016–2018

On January 11, 2016, World Bank Group president Jim Yong Kim named Levy as the bank's Chief Financial Officer, replacing Bertrand Badre.[9] Levy's appointment at the World Bank Group was effective February 1, 2016. As former managing director and World Bank Group Chief Financial Officer https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/people/j/joaquim-levy, Levy was responsible for the financial and risk management strategies of the World Bank Group and for the institutions that make up the Group. This included development of new, innovative financial products and services, oversight of the financial reporting, risk management, and mobilization of financial resources in alignment with the Group's strategy.

Brazilian Development Bank, 2018–2019

In November 2018, it was announced that Levy was chosen by the team of President-elect Jair Bolsonaro to become the next president of the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES).[10] On 16 June 2019, Levy left the presidency of the bank after a controversy between President Bolsonaro and the nominee for director of the bank's Capital Market, Marcos Barbosa Pinto, who was Chief of Staff of Demian Fiocca, former president of BNDES during the government of former President Lula.[11]

Other activities

In June 2021, Levy was appointed to the World BankInternational Monetary Fund High-Level Advisory Group (HLAG) on Sustainable and Inclusive Recovery and Growth, co-chaired by Mari Pangestu, Ceyla Pazarbasioglu, and Nicholas Stern.[12]

External links

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Notes and References

  1. News: New Brazilian finance minister . Financial Times . 27 November 2014 . FT.com. 29 November 2014 . Pearson . Samantha . Leahy . Joe .
  2. News: Ministers Take Office in a Ceremony in Brasilia . Portuguese . Portal Brasil . Imprensa Oficial . Brasilia, Brazil . 2015-01-01 . 2015-02-01.
  3. Web site: Bradesco hires Levy as Director. Estadão Newspaper. 21 November 2014.
  4. Web site: List of Treasury Secretaries of Brazil, in Portuguese. National Treasury website. 21 November 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20141124071920/http://www3.tesouro.fazenda.gov.br/instituicao_tesouro/curriculum_secretarios.asp. 24 November 2014.
  5. Web site: Levy's professional experience, in Portuguese . Bank Workers Union. 21 November 2014.
  6. News: Banker to be named Brazil finance minister. 21 November 2014 . Reuters. 21 November 2014.
  7. Web site: Volume Managed. Bradesco Asset. 21 November 2014.
  8. News: New Brazilian finance minister . Financial Times . 27 November 2014 . FT.com. 29 November 2014 . Pearson . Samantha . Leahy . Joe .
  9. News: Brazil ex-finance head joins World Bank . Financial Times . 9 January 2016 . FT.com. 9 January 2016 . Donnan . Shawn . Pearson . Samantha .
  10. Web site: Joaquim Levy será o presidente do BNDEs. Estadão. pt. Sonia. Racy. 11 November 2018. 16 June 2019.
  11. Web site: Joaquim Levy pede demissão da presidência do BNDES. Folha de S. Paulo. pt. Alexa. Salomão. William. Castanho. Bernardo. Caram. 16 June 2019. 16 June 2019. limited.
  12. https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2021/06/14/pr21175-world-bank-imf-launch-hlag-sustainable-inclusive-recovery-growth World Bank, IMF Launch High-Level Advisory Group on Sustainable and Inclusive Recovery and Growth