Professor Hal Scott, director of the Harvard Law School Program on International Financial Systems, recently gathered public and private sector financial leaders from Brazil and the U.S. to examine issues affecting the financial relationship between the two countries. Participants discussed a range of current issues, including the status of Brazil and New York as financial centers; inflation and exchange rates; development of derivatives markets and risk management in Brazil; and extraterritoriality in post-crisis rules and their impact on financial markets.

The first annual Symposium on Building the Financial System of the 21st Century: An Agenda for Brazil and the United States was co-organized by PIFS and Fundação Getulio Vargas, Direito Rio Law School.

“PIFS saw a need for dialogue about the financial issues affecting Brazil and the United States. Given the strong growth in Brazilian financial markets and the fact this market is increasingly important to the United States, it seemed the time was right to initiate this dialogue,” said Scott. “We were pleased to hold this inaugural event in Brazil and look forward to institutionalizing the symposium as a yearly event.”

Over 70 participants attended and included senior government officials, financial firm leaders, lawyers, consultants, and scholars from the U.S. and Brazil.

Keynote speakers included:

  • Arminio Fraga, founding partner, Gávea Investimentos
  • Daniel M. Gallagher, commissioner U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Leonardo Pereira, chairman, Comissão de Valores Mobiliários
  • Troy A. Paredes, commissioner U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Thomas A. Shannon Jr., United States ambassador to Brazil
  • Otavio Yazbek, commissioner Comissão de Valores Mobiliários

Founded in 1986, PIFS conducts international research, provides a global forum for exchange of ideas, and educates international lawyers. For the past 20 years, the program has published books, held international symposia, and provided public policy advice to numerous countries around the globe.