Henrique Meirelles facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Henrique Meirelles
|
|
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2019
|
|
| Secretary of Finance and Planning of São Paulo | |
| In office 1 January 2019 – 1 April 2022 |
|
| Governor | João Doria |
| Preceded by | Luiz Cláudio de Carvalho |
| Succeeded by | Tomás Bruginski de Paula |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 12 May 2016 – 6 April 2018 |
|
| President | Michel Temer |
| Preceded by | Nelson Barbosa |
| Succeeded by | Eduardo Guardia |
| President of the Central Bank | |
| In office 1 January 2003 – 31 December 2010 |
|
| President | Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva |
| Preceded by | Arminio Fraga |
| Succeeded by | Alexandre Tombini |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Henrique de Campos Meirelles
31 August 1945 Anápolis, Goiás, Brazil |
| Political party | UNIÃO (2022–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
|
| Spouse |
Eva Missine
(m. 2003) |
| Alma mater |
|
| Signature |  |
Henrique de Campos Meirelles (born 31 August 1945) is a Brazilian manager and politician. He has held important roles in Brazil's government and in international finance. He was the Minister of Finance and also served as the president of the Central Bank of Brazil from 2003 to 2011.
Meirelles has also been involved with large companies. He chaired the board of directors for J&F, a company that owns businesses like JBS and Vigor. He is also a board member for Azul Brazilian Airlines. In 2018, he ran for president of Brazil.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Henrique Meirelles was born on August 31, 1945. His father, Hegesipo de Campos Meirelles, was a lawyer for a state bank. His mother, Diva Silva de Campos, designed wedding gowns.
Moving to São Paulo
He moved from Goiânia to São Paulo to study civil engineering. He graduated from the School of Engineering at the University of São Paulo in 1972.
Further Studies
In 1974, he earned an MBA in Business Administration. He completed this degree at the Coppead Institute, which is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He also received an honorary doctor's degree from Bryant College.
Career in Banking
Meirelles started his career in 1974 at BankBoston. He worked there for 28 years, handling business both in Brazil and internationally.
Leading BankBoston in Brazil
In 1984, Meirelles became the president of BankBoston in Brazil. He held this important position for 12 years.
Working Globally
In 1996, Meirelles moved to Boston, USA. There, he became the President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) for BankBoston worldwide. He stayed in this global role until 1999.
After the Merger
In 1999, BankBoston Corporation joined with Fleet Financial Group. The new company was called FleetBoston Financial. Henrique Meirelles became the president of FleetBoston Financial's Global Banking division. He retired from banking in 2002 and returned to Brazil.
Political Journey
Meirelles had been involved in student movements when he was younger. His family also had a history in politics. His grandfather was mayor of Anápolis three times. His father held roles in the State Secretariat of Goiás. An uncle was a governor.
Starting in Politics
In 2002, Meirelles decided to run for a political office. He ran for congressman in Goiás with the PSDB party. He won with the most votes in the state, getting 183,000 votes.
Leading the Central Bank
Because of his success and his strong background in finance, President Lula chose Meirelles for a very important job. In 2003, Meirelles became the president of Brazil's Central Bank (Banco Central do Brasil). He resigned from his congressman role to take on this new position.
Meirelles led the Central Bank for eight years, throughout President Lula's time in office. He announced his departure in November 2010. In 2005, he was given the special status of State Secretary while leading the Central Bank.
Olympic Council Role
In 2011, President Dilma Rousseff invited Meirelles to join the Public Olympic Council. His job was to help coordinate all the investments for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He worked on this project until 2014.
Running for President
In May 2018, Meirelles's party, the Brazilian Democratic Movement, announced he would be a candidate for president of Brazil. On August 2, 2018, he officially became the party's candidate.
Recent Activities
In the 2022 Brazilian general election, Meirelles supported the candidacy of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In September 2022, he was hired by the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
Managing the Central Bank of Brazil
Henrique Meirelles was the longest-serving president of Brazil's Central Bank (BCB). He held the position for eight years, from 2003 to 2010, during President Lula's government.
Economy Challenges
When Meirelles started at the Central Bank, Brazil's economy was facing difficulties. Inflation was high, and international reserves were low. The value of the dollar was also high compared to the Brazilian currency.
Key Actions and Results
One of his first actions was to increase interest rates. Throughout his time, he worked to control inflation. He managed to keep inflation rates within the government's targets every year, except for 2003.
During his leadership, Brazil experienced a long period of economic growth. The country's economy grew by about 3% per year for more than 60 months.
- In 2003, the economy grew by 1.1%.
- In 2004, it jumped to 5.7%.
- In 2005, 2006, and 2007, the economy continued to grow.
- In 2008, it grew by 5.1%.
Inflation rates also decreased significantly. By 2006, inflation was down to 3.14%.
Strengthening the Economy
By the end of his time at the Central Bank, Brazil's international reserves had grown from R$38 billion to R$280 billion. Experts believe this strong growth in reserves helped Brazil get through the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 without major problems. Many credit Meirelles with helping to keep the country's economy stable during this challenging time.
Work with J&F Holding
After leaving the Central Bank, Meirelles was invited to chair the board of directors at J&F. This company controls several businesses, including JBS (a large meat company), Original Bank, and Vigor Alimentos.
Professionalizing the Company
Joesley Batista, the head of JBS, asked Meirelles to help make J&F more professional. Meirelles was tasked with creating better ways for the company to make decisions. He also worked on expanding the company both in Brazil and internationally. He focused on getting good results from executives and planning for the company to offer its shares to the public in the future.
Impact on Business
When Meirelles's arrival at J&F was announced, JBS's shares increased in value. In 2011, the J&F Group had a total revenue of R$65 billion. It employed about 145,000 people and had businesses in more than 22 countries.
Digital Banking Project
In 2015, Original Bank, one of J&F's companies, had R$4.6 billion in assets. Meirelles led a project to turn Original Bank into a fully digital bank. This meant there would be no physical branches, and all services would be offered online through their website.
Other Important Roles
Henrique Meirelles has held many other important positions throughout his career:
- Chairman of J&F Investimentos.
- Board member of Lloyd's of London.
- Board member of Azul Brazilian Airlines.
- Advisor to the dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
- Advisor to the dean of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
- Advisor to the Latin American Studies Center at Washington University in St. Louis.
- Chairman of the Society for Revitalization of the City of São Paulo.
- Founder and President of the Brazilian Association of Leasing Companies.
- Member of FTI Consulting.
- President of the "Viva o Centro" Association, which works to improve the downtown area of São Paulo.
- President Emeritus of the Brazilian Association of International Banks.
- Director of the São Paulo Chamber of Commerce.
- Board member of several educational institutions.
- Member of the Inter-American Dialogue.
Personal Life
Meirelles is known for being very active and dedicated to his work. He often works long hours and is considered a "workaholic."
Hobbies
In the 1960s, Meirelles took one of the first courses at the Interlagos Racetrack. There, he learned skills to become a race driver.
Awards and Honors
Meirelles has received many awards and honors for his work:
- Brazilian of the Year in Economy – IstoÉ magazine.
- Best Central Banker of the Americas – The Banker magazine, London.
- Best Banker in Latin America of 2006.
- 2008 – Bravo Awards – Financier of the Year.
- 2008 – Emerging Market Awards – Best Central Banker for Latin America.
- 2010 – Personality of the Year – Prêmio Lide.
See also
In Spanish: Henrique Meirelles para niños
