Rafael develops our strategy in Latin America, leading regional business development initiatives and forming new partnerships. He was previously Head of Strategy and Business Development for Latin America at Laureate Education. Rafael joined Laureate in Brazil in 2008 as one of the initial members of Laureate’s Brazil organization. He was instrumental in the creation a network with 12 highly distinguished Brazilian institutions. Between 2014 and 2018, led Strategy and Business Development for Laureate in Latin America, which represented nearly 75% of the global company.
Prior to joining Cintana, Rafael was the Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development at Mastercard for Latin America. In his role, he was responsible for leading strategy for the region and its key markets and driving M&A initiatives across Latin America.
Rafael held multiple positions in finance and in corporate development at Votorantim Group, one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Latin America and at Unilever where he started his career.
Rafael holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from State University of Campinas (Unicamp) in Brazil.