In the midst of the expectation of the Government that intends to close a new agreement and seeks an injection of fresh funds, Rodrigo Valdés, Director of the Western Hemisphere Department of the IMF, arrives to speak at a forum.
According to official sources from the International Monetary Fund, apart from his trip to Buenos Aires to attend the IEFA LATAM Forum,
he plans to meet with government officials
Lowering the foam of that meeting a little, they explained that "
this is common practice"
and that it is "simply a continuation of the ongoing technical conversations between IMF staff and the Argentine authorities."
In addition, "as with the visit of the First Deputy Managing Director, Gita Gopinath, Mr. Valdés will also take the opportunity to meet with some analysts to continue our contact with various interested parties," they indicated through IMF sources.
In any case, Valdes' main activity will be speaking at the IEFA (International Economic Forum of the Americas) forum that he organizes together with
Integra Capital, José Luis Manzano's holding company
that was born in 1995 and since then and according to what he promotes, he has completed projects for
US$ 17 billion in financing and investment.
Manzano is one of the speakers at the meeting that starts on Tuesday and ends on Wednesday at the Four Seasons.
And in an Argentina with a debt that for many is insurmountable, the presence of Rodrigo Valdes, another speaker, with responsibility for the Western Hemisphere of the IMF,
will be the true center of attention.
Valdes will inaugurate the forum together with Lisa Raitt, vice president of global investment banking at the Imperial Bank of Canada (CIBC) and Javier Gimeno, CEO for Latin America of the French company Saint-Gobain.
Valdés took office in May 2023, replacing Brazilian Ilan Goldfajn, who resigned to preside over the IDB.
The role of the former Chilean minister of Michele Bachelet's socialist government is key
because he supervises the current program with the IMF.
And it comes in the midst of Luis Caputo's efforts, which translate into a sharp drop in spending and a fiscal and financial surplus
to achieve another program with the Fund that will allow him to access fresh money.
When it is his turn, Manzano will be presented as someone who
“deeply understands Latin America and emerging markets
. ”
He will refer to Integra Capital, which provides services in the purchase and mergers of companies and going public.
He will also present himself as a shareholder in Phoenix Global Resources, dedicated to oil exploitation and listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Ships 10,000 barrels daily.
Another of his companies, Interoil, an expert in oil exploration, is listed in Oslo.
Manzano has interests in Venezuela and in the distribution of gas in Buenos Aires through Metrogas, in energy with
Edenor and in Edemsa,
in Mendoza, where it owns the
Ameghino dam and Altus, the premium wine cellar.
S.N.