Maria Helena Santana has enjoyed a long and storied career in the Brazilian capital markets. She was deeply involved in the development of the higher-governance Novo Mercado in the early 2000s, seeking a market solution to the lack of confidence in Brazilian equities at the time.

She subsequently led the CVM during the global financial crisis – despite which, the CVM managed to pass a number of key shareholder rights and transparency reforms, some of which Maria Helena now believes went too far.

For the last decade, Maria Helena has served on the boards of some of Brazil's most high profile companies, including Itaú Unibanco, CINT, Oi, Totvs, GPA and XP. As a practitioner of governance she shares what she looks for in a board, how board culture has evolved in Brazil, and compares her experience of controlled and dispersed ownership structures and their different challenges.

We take the opportunity to learn from her vast experience, share war stories – and return to the recurring themes of the importance of values, culture and long term owner orientation.