Business Breakfast - Ilan Goldfajn

BUSINESS BREAKFAST

Canning House will be hosting a business breakfast roundtable with Ilan Goldfajn, President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). This session will offer an opportunity to hear directly from the head of the region’s largest source of development finance on the IDB Group’s latest priorities and its work in connecting the UK private sector with high-quality investment opportunities across Latin America.

Dr Goldfajn will outline how the IDB is supporting high-impact investment throughout the region, with a focus on sectors such as infrastructure, the energy transition, critical minerals, agribusiness and data centres.

Under the BID for the Americas initiative, IDB is positioning itself as a strategic partner for UK businesses as a facilitator - enabling more UK companies to participate in IDB-financed procurement processes, access trade and investment opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean, and co-finance projects in the region through IDB Invest and IDB Lab.

About Ilan Goldfajn

Ilan Goldfajn was elected President of the Inter-American Development Bank in November 2022. Before taking up this position, he served as Director of the Western Hemisphere Department at the International Monetary Fund, where he worked closely with countries implementing IMF-supported programmes and led engagement on climate policy through the institution’s new Resilience and Sustainability Facility. He previously served as Governor of the Central Bank of Brazil, overseeing major reforms to enhance financial inclusion and innovation, and has held senior roles at Itaú Unibanco, Gávea Investimentos and Credit Suisse Brazil. Dr Goldfajn holds a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The IDB Group is the leading multilateral lender in Latin America and the Caribbean, approving over US$14 billion in developmental assets in 2024. The UK has strengthened its partnership with the Bank, committing up to £80 million in capital support to help drive private-sector-led development and climate action across the region.

This roundtable will explore the opportunities emerging from this expanding UK–IDB partnership and the investment landscape it is helping to shape. Dr Goldfajn will offer his perspective on the region’s economic trajectory and the role of multilateral finance in supporting long-term, inclusive growth.

Attendance by invitation only.