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Dear Members, Partners, and Friends,
2025 was a year of innovation, political upheaval, and market surprises. For the first time in years, China and Europe outperformed US equity markets in dollar terms. Rates fell, and in Switzerland returned to zero rates, and gold hit all-time highs. In the US, markets rebounded from trade-driven volatility with AI-linked innovation and spending as notable drivers.
As we enter 2026, the world stands at a crossroads: Can momentum from AI and innovation help markets and economies achieve “escape velocity,” breaking free from the gravity of rising debt, political uncertainty, and lingering inflation? Or will these forces pull us back to earth?
And where does Latin America stand?
It is with great pleasure that we are inviting you to join us for our traditional annual economic and financial outlook webinar powered by our patron UBS:
Year Ahead: Escape velocity?
on February 5, 2026, at 4.30-5.30 pm (Swiss time).
Speaker
For the fifth consecutive time, we are delighted to welcome as our speaker Alejo Czerwonko, Chief Investment Officer, Emerging Markets Americas, at UBS Global Wealth Management I(New York).In this capacity, Alejo leads a team of analysts focusing on emerging markets macro-economics and the development of investment ideas in these markets, influencing the allocation of billions of dollars of the firm’s assets under management.
Alejo Czerwonko is a member of the CIO Americas Management Committee and the Wealth Management Latin America Management Committee. Alejo is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Wilson Center’s Latin America Program, the leading global think tank based in Washington, D.C. Alejo frequently appears on Bloomberg Television, CNBC, and CNN, and regularly contributes to financial publications including the Financial Times, Bloomberg, Reuters, and the Wall Street Journal.
Alejo earned a PhD in economics from Columbia University. He also holds a degree in economics and finance from Tilburg University and Universidad del CEMA. He is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, where he teaches a course on emerging markets.
Introductory remarks
Luis Cardoso is a Managing Director at UBS, heading the Wealth Management International Latin America department. His team covers Latin American clients out of UBS offices in Switzerland, Germany, Panama, Mexico, Chile and Colombia.Throughout his career, he has held other roles such as Deputy Head of UBS WM International Division, Co-lead Market Head for WM Brazil, and Head of Advisory and Wealth Planning WM International. Previously, Luis served as CFO for WM Americas and CoHead of Strategy for Global Wealth Management since 2018.
He joined UBS in 2010 in Zurich to work on the firm’s Corporate Development team, focusing on UBS Group Mergers and Acquisitions as well as on Group Strategy activities, with most notable project the restructuring of the Investment Bank in 2012 (Project Accelerate).
Born and raised in Portugal, Luis completed his studies in the Netherlands. Upon graduation, he moved to Zurich to work at Alstom Power as design engineer and later as chief designer for gas turbines. After three years at Alstom, Luis moved in 2004 to McKinsey & Co in Zurich, where, as a management consultant, he focused on financial services for six years. Luis holds a mechanical engineering degree from the Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon, Portugal, and attended the Men-Machine Systems, Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands.
