Rodrigo Osvaldo Valdés Pulido[a] (born 26 November 1966) is a Chilean economist and politician who served as minister of finance from May 11, 2015 to August 31, 2017 under president Michelle Bachelet.[1]

Rodrigo Valdés
Valdés in 2016
Minister of Finance
In office
11 May 2015 – 31 August 2017
PresidentMichelle Bachelet
Preceded byAlberto Arenas
Succeeded byFelipe Larraín Bascuñán
Personal details
Born (1966-11-26) 26 November 1966 (age 57)
Santiago, Chile
Political partyParty for Democracy
Other political
affiliations
New Majority
Alma materUniversity of Chile
Massachusetts Institute of
Technology

Education

edit

Valdés has an MBA and degree in economics from the Universidad de Chile as well as a doctorate in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).[2]

Career

edit

Before becoming Minister of Finance, Valdés served as Chairman of the Board of Directors and of the Executive Committee of state-run bank Banco del Estado de Chile. He also worked as chief economist for the Andean Region and Argentina at Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual (2012-2014); as Deputy Director of the European Department, Deputy Director of the Western Hemisphere Department and mission chief for the United States at the International Monetary Fund (2009-2012); and as chief economist for Latin America at Barclays Capital (2008-2009), among other jobs.[3]

Valdés was appointed to the Bachelet government during a political crisis triggered by corruption scandals that, at the time, had seen the President’s popularity ratings sink to record lows. Early in his term as, he embarked on a reform agenda that he saw himself forced to water down shortly after because of an economic slowdown.[4] He also led the government’s efforts to reform the pension system.[5] Along with his deputy Alejandro Micco and economy minister Luis Carlos Cespedes, Valdés resigned shortly ahead of the 2017 elections; he was replaced by Nicolás Eyzaguirre.[6]

In 2018, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde appointed Valdés to the External Advisory Group on Surveillance, a group mandated to review the Fund's operational priorities through 2025.[7]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Valdés and the second or maternal family name is Pulido.

References

edit
  1. ^ "Chilean president appoints new cabinet". BBC News. BBC. May 11, 2015. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  2. ^ Rosalba O'Brien and Anthony Esposito (May 11, 2015), Chile's finance minister out in sweeping Cabinet reshuffle Reuters.
  3. ^ Robert Kozak and Ryan Dube (May 11, 2015), Chile President Names New Cabinet Ministers Wall Street Journal.
  4. ^ Benedict Mander (October 5, 2015), Chile dilutes economy reform package Financial Times.
  5. ^ Benedict Mander (August 31, 2017), Chile’s finance, economy ministers resign Financial Times.
  6. ^ Benedict Mander (August 31, 2017), Chile’s finance, economy ministers resign Financial Times.
  7. ^ IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde Names External Advisory Groups for the 2020 Comprehensive Surveillance Review International Monetary Fund (IMF), press release of October 30, 2018.
edit
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Finance
2015–2018
Succeeded by