Luis Alberto Moreno spent seven years as Colombia’s ambassador to the US and made such a good impression that Washington backed his bid to become president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) last October.

He may not control the billions of dollars that some of our other big hitters do, but Marcelo Mindlin of private equity fund Grupo Dolphin nonetheless makes our list as part of a new class of Argentine entrepreneur, aggressively (re)making their fortunes in the aftermath of the country’s massive 2001 default.

Five years after a big bank acquisition, it is a rare deal that is viewed as an unmitigated success. But that is what has happened in the case of Citigroup’s purchase of Mexican bank Banamex.

Listed by Forbes as the third richest man in the world behind Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, no list of Latin America’s big hitters would be complete without Mexico’s Carlos Slim. After making another $6bn last year, the 66-year-old’s net worth is now estimated to be about $30bn.

Bond trader André Esteves hit the jackpot in May when UBS agreed to buy Brazilian investment bank Banco Pactual, in which he holds a 30% stake, for $2.6bn.

He first did it for Continental Illinois (now part of Bank of America) before the debt crisis. Then he did it for Bear Stearns. Afterwards he did it for Morgan Stanley. Now he hopes to do it for Deutsche Bank.

He was Mexico’s deputy finance minister in the first half of President Vicente Fox’s administration, pushing for fiscal reform and credited with doing an excellent job, particularly in his handling of the country’s fractious Congress (not, as bankers point out, something at which the Fox administration in general has been very good).

How do you get to be in charge of all of Latin America for a major Wall Street bank by the age of 35? Do a great a job as head of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is the answer in the case of Nicolás Aguzín.

Brazil’s public banks are striving for efficiency in an increasingly competitive market. Elizabeth Johnson reports.

Competition among South Korea’s financial institutions is intensifying, and consolidations are still on the cards. Local giants such as Shinhan Bank are looking to neighbouring markets for opportunities. Karina Robinson reports.