Isabel Charraz has been part of Citibank’s Portuguese operation since 2003, and during her progression to her current role as country legal counsel (senior vice president) she has taken on a myriad of responsibilities. She is particularly noted for her support of the company’s compliance and anti-money laundering efforts in addition to legal matters.

Charraz takes an anticipatory approach to dealing with legal risks: ‘The country counsel should be proactive in order to ensure that any potential country, franchise or reputational risk issues are being addressed appropriately by the local business functions, and that the right resources are being focused on these issues. Establishing specific, detailed plans aligned to the business objectives, considering the necessary resources and realistic timeframes for projects, addresses potential challenges before they impact performance’, she explains.

As well as this, she knows Citi’s operation in detail, and has ensured her team has a similar level of knowledge to inform its work. ‘I have fostered a deep involvement of the legal department with local business areas’, she explains, ‘in order to ensure a strong knowledge of the operational part of the banking and financial products offered in the country. This has led to team members having more robust legal expertise relating to these specific products. They are also now more able to identify potential legal risks and keep abreast of legal and regulatory developments which impact upon the group’s business’.