Figueiredo will report jointly to José Berenguer, Brazil senior country officer of JP Morgan, and Chris Harvey, head of private banking for Latin America.

Figueiredo latterly served as chief executive of UBS's Brazil wealth management business, having previously worked at Banco Itau - most recently as CEO of the firm’s private banking business in Luxembourg and Switzerland. He has also held senior positions focusing on investment products at BankBoston and ABN AMRO in Brazil. 

JP Morgan Private Bank said it views Brazil as a “key market,” as demonstrated by its six offices serving high net worth and ultra high net worth clients in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba and Recife.

The firm is certainly not alone in its endeavours to tap wealth management opportunities in the Latin American country. UBS, for example, in May appointed Sylvia Coutinho as CEO of UBS Group Brazil, taking over from Lywal Salles, who retired in June.

Indeed, there is an abundance of opportunities available to international firms considering a move into Latin America, as the global economy continues to be fuelled by growth in emerging markets like Brazil and Mexico, Juan Pablo Cuevas wrote in a recent Merrill Lynch report on the region.