BIO
Ms. María Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila’s initial years were with family businesses, La Auxiliadora Funeral Home. She founded Internacional de Seguros in 1997, becoming the first woman President of an Insurance Company. In 1999, she became the first woman Minister of Foreign Affairs in El Salvador, serving five years.
In August 2004, she was elected the first woman President of a private bank and held this position when HSBC acquired a controlling majority in 2006. In 2007, she pioneered a new function in the region as Corporate Sustainability Head till 2015.
Ms. Avila serves on the Board of nonprofits: the University of Miami External Advisory Board on Latin America, Universidad Dr. Jose Matias Delgado, and Commissioner of the International Commission on Missing Persons based in The Hague. She is also Non-Executive Director on Business Boards: El Salvador Stock Exchange, Davivienda Financial Conglomerate El Salvador, and Honduras.
