Manuel Sacerdote
Argentina
Manuel Sacerdote
  • Former Regional President, BankBoston (Argentina) (now ICBC) (Financial Services)
Born Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1943. Bachelors, University of Buenos Aires (1965); MBA, Harvard Business School (1968).
“We taught people how to export … Consortia were built for exports. For instance, small businesses that were unable to export on their own came together in some regions to export their products collectively.”

Summary

Manuel Sacerdote outlines the expansion of Bank of Boston—one of the oldest US banks in Latin America. During the late twentieth century it survived numerous mergers with other New England banks, resulting in the creation of BankBoston in 1996. Later, in 1999, Boston-based Fleet Bank acquired BankBoston. In 2002, the business lost more money than the entire profit since the Bank opened. More ownership shifts followed; in 2004, FleetBoston was purchased by Bank of America, which divested the Latin American assets. In 2006, BankBoston Argentina was sold to South Africa's Standard Bank. In this interview, Sacerdote explains the bank’s sustained growth in Argentina, amid these constant shifts, stressing that the bank’s success was reliant on paying close attention to local concerns. He also discusses the development of the bank's foundation for Argentine businessmen, including a group that helped form consortia for Argentine companies in the export sector.

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Manuel Sacerdote outlines the expansion of Bank of Boston—one of the oldest US banks in Latin America. During the late twentieth century it survived numerous mergers with other New England banks, resulting in the creation of BankBoston in 1996. Later, in 1999, Boston-based Fleet Bank acquired BankBoston. In 2002, the business lost more money than the entire profit since the Bank opened. More ownership shifts followed; in 2004, FleetBoston was purchased by Bank of America, which divested the Latin American assets. In 2006, BankBoston Argentina was sold to South Africa's Standard Bank. In this interview, Sacerdote explains the bank’s sustained growth in Argentina, amid these constant shifts, stressing that the bank’s success was reliant on paying close attention to local concerns. He also discusses the development of the bank's foundation for Argentine businessmen, including a group that helped form consortia for Argentine companies in the export sector.

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Interview Citation Format

"Interview with Manuel Sacerdote, interviewed by Andrea Lluch, December 21, 2008, Creating Emerging Markets Project, Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School, http://www.hbs.edu/creating-emerging-markets/."