Antoni Codinas ’11Journal #1
I am excited to be working at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) this summer. The IDB is a multilateral financial institution based in Washington DC that represents the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean. Its mission is to support the efforts by Latin America and the Caribbean countries to reduce poverty and inequality and bring economic development in a sustainable, climate-friendly way.
While the IDB is a regular bank in many ways, it is also unique in some key respects. Besides loans, it also provides grants, technical assistance and does research. Its shareholders are 48 member countries, including 26 Latin American and Caribbean borrowing members, who have a majority ownership of the IDB. Given its shareholder base and prudent management, the IDB has a strong financial position. As a result, the IDB is able to borrow in international markets at competitive rates and transfer that benefit to its clients in 26 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Throughout my career I’ve been committed to the economic development of low-income countries, in special by strengthening their financial and capital markets. As a summer intern at the Financial Markets Division of the Structured and Corporate Finance Department, I am helping to identify the main challenges faced by Latin-American and Caribbean financial institutions when they try to raise capital in the financial markets, and in the elaboration of solutions to mitigate them.
The Structured and Corporate Finance Department maintains primary operational responsibility for the IDB’s financing of private investment in various infrastructure sectors and for the development of domestic capital markets. The Department also supports the development of international trade and regional integration through the implementation of a trade finance facilitation program aimed to support private sector companies in the Latin America and Caribbean region.
Financial Markets is a division within the Structured and Corporate Finance Department consisting of a multicultural team of approximately 30 professionals. We focus on the development of capital and financial markets in Latin American and Caribbean countries by working to strengthen its financial institutions and other market participants. We provide syndicated loans and guarantees to market players to help them develop new products and approaches and to mobilize other financial resources from international commercial banks.
After my orientation day carried out by the HR department, I joined my new team. After the introductions, my supervisor presented me several projects from which I would join three. Each project is managed by a project team and a team leader. Given my personal interest in the topic, I joined a lending project to a financial institution specialized in providing financing to small and medium infrastructure projects in Latin America and the Caribbean. This project will be carried out during the whole length of my internship and the team leader expects to present the final lending proposal for approval in the last week of the internship. The other two projects I chose involve the renewal of lines of credit to finance trade finance activities to two financial institutions in the Caribbean — a Bank in Jamaica and a Bank in Dominican Republic. These renewals will be my entire responsibility and I will be guided by the two officials that previously worked with these institutions.
Journal # 2
I’ve been at the IDB for several weeks now. I am really enjoying my job, and I feel I am learning a lot about the Latin American and Caribbean financial markets. My colleagues and supervisors are very open to share information, give input to my work, and provide very good advice.
In addition to the work and meetings related to my projects, an important part of the internship is to get introduced to the organization and its operational structure. I reached out to several departments that support or work closely with us in the credit process, and I talked with managers and staff members. Everybody has been very kind and happy to explain their function to me and how they interact with my department. Overall there is a very collaborative and open culture at the IDB, and it materializes as well in the relation with the clients, that consider the IDB a crucial partner in their businesses.
Another aspect that contributes to this collaborative environment is the sense of community within the IDB. There are several staff groups that organize activities, mentoring programs and support for expatriated families. This sense of community is celebrated at the annual picnic, which was held during my internship. One Friday, buses picked up staff from the office and left to a country club outside Washington DC. Several sport tournaments and activities were organized and people shared a great day with their colleagues.
At the beginning of my internship I was invited to join the Young Connections group, a group managed and composed by young staff members. Young Connections organizes events, information sessions and mentoring programs geared to improving the experience and professional development of young professionals at the IDB. During the summer, I participated in several networking luncheons with senior management that provided very good insights and advice on career development.
The IDB staff is mainly composed by Spanish and Portuguese speaking people from Latin America and the Caribbean. There are also staff members from non-borrowing countries, like the United States, Spain, Germany, Korea, or China. Even though almost all the documents are produced in English, staff and clients communicate both in English and Spanish, and both languages are used in meetings.
The cultural proximity with the clients goes beyond the language. This summer the World Cup is being played in South Africa and soccer is the most followed sport in Latin American countries. For specific matches involving Latin American teams and for the last phases of the tournament, people gather at the cafeteria to see the game together with their compatriots. Then, at the beginning of all the meetings, there is always a short commentary about the previous match or the evolutions of a particular country selection.
Journal #3
As my internship comes to its end, I feel that this experience will contribute greatly to my professional development. During the summer I improved my knowledge about the financial markets in Latin America and the Caribbean and learned about the operational and institutional infrastructure in which financial institutions operate in the region. In addition, I acquired and reinforced specific technical skills in the areas of corporate finance and banking that are necessary for a successful career in the financial sector. I collaborated closely with professionals and senior management, which from now on are part of my network of contacts in the economic development field, and I learned the structure, culture, and processes of an important multilateral institution.The projects I worked for allowed me to participate in the full cycle of the origination process. I wrote a project proposal, elaborated extensive financial analysis, participated in contract negotiations and conducted due diligence with clients, presented at credit committees, and collaborated with a whole range of departments and professionals along the process.
But most importantly, I feel that my work this summer has generated a measurable impact to the development of the Latin American and Caribbean economy. With the financing provided through the projects I worked on, $60 million will be invested in sustainable infrastructure projects in remote areas in some of the poorest countries in the region, improving the livelihoods and opportunities of the local communities. In the Caribbean, entrepreneurs and local companies will have an easier access to international trade activities thanks to the financing provided to support their exports and imports.
