"Itaú Unibanco is the multilatina of banking," said AS/COA President and CEO Susan Segal as she introduced the bank's Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors Roberto Setubal in a fireside chat at the Latin American Business Conference 2018. Setubal discussed the main drivers of change in the financial services sector, from blockchain to mobile technology, and shared his personal insights in leading small and big companies alike in Latin America.

Learn about Young Professionals of the Americas.

Speakers:

• Colin Crowell, Vice President, Global Public Policy & Corporate Philanthropy, Twitter 
• Rodrigo Diamanti, Director, Un Mundo Sin Mordaza 
• Daniel Wilkinson, Managing Director for the Americas, Human Rights Watch 
• Raúl Stolk, Lawyer and Writer; Chairman, Caracas Chronicles (moderator)

Fake news is a problem, but the truth can spread just as quickly, Twitter's Colin Crowell said in a panel that started with a discussion on the importance of citizen journalists in Venezuela. Human Rights Watch's Daniel Wilkinson explained how Venezuelan citizens' active use of social media and videos is crucial to document human rights violations today. For Rodrigo Diamanti of Un Mundo sin Mordaza, the International Criminal Court's decision in February to open a preliminary investigation into human rights abuses by the Maduro government is "the best thing that has happened to Venezuela in the last five years." Diamanti also said that one of his greatest concerns is that the Maduro regime is moving toward cutting off the internet entirely in the country in the interest of self-preservation, and he urged the international community to move proactively to safeguard the internet before that could happen.

The digital economy will have a forceful impact and we'll have to know how to react to it, said Ultrapar CEO Thilo Mannhardt in this interview on the sidelines of the 2017 Council of the Americas Symposium and BRAVO Business Awards.

• Learn more about the symposium and awards. 
• Watch videos of the event.

China aims to be the world's leader in artificial intelligence by 2030 and, as an increasingly important trade partner for Latin America, the region needs to be able to match the sophistication of its Asian counterpart. In an interview on the sidelines of the 2017 Council of the Americas Symposium and BRAVO Business Awards, IBM Latin America General Manager Ana Paul Assis says, over time, the region will increasingly adopt artificial intelligence, blockchain, and other disruptive technology.

• Learn more about the symposium and awards. 
• Watch videos of the event.

The digital economy is a double-edged sword, says Aeromexico CEO Andrés Conesa, but "in the end it's a net benefit for everyone." In a sideline interview at the 2017 Council of the Americas Symposium and BRAVO Business Awards, Conesa shared insights on the effects of technology on the travel industry.

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"Digital technology is what is enabling new business models to be invented," said CEMEX CEO Fernando González about Latin America's digital economy. Speaking on the sidelines of the 2017 Council of the Americas Symposium and BRAVO Business Awards, he added that: "At the same time new business models are invented, some others are destroyed."

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• Watch videos of the event.

The president of Microsoft Latin America, César Cernuda, spoke about Latin America's digital economy on the sidelines of the 2017 Council of the Americas Symposium and BRAVO Business Awards. Cernuda said the region, with a population of 644 million, has the ability to generate a lot of information when it comes to digital currency.

• Learn more about the symposium and awards. 
• Watch videos of the event.