Roberto Azevêdo is a founding partner at YvY Capital, an asset management company focused on investments that facilitate the Brazilian and global transition to the green economy. He is engaged in other activities in the private sector leveraging his expertise on trade, public policy, negotiations, corporate, and geopolitical issues. He regularly offers consulting and advisory services to industries and companies with a global focus. 

Until August 2023, Azevêdo was PepsiCo’s global Chief Corporate Affairs Officer overseeing Public Policy, External Relations and Communications, while also working closely with the sustainability team. He also chaired the Board of Directors of the PepsiCo Foundation.  

Before joining PepsiCo, Azevêdo was Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), a position he held for seven years, since 2013. During his tenure, the WTO expanded its membership with the inclusion of half a dozen new members and delivered its first multilateral agreements after 18 years of existence. These include the Trade Facilitation Agreement and the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement. He also led negotiations that abolished agricultural export subsidies, strengthened food security regulations, and provided greater access to global markets for products and services from less developed countries. Under his stewardship, new and creative platforms launched conversations on e-commerce, services regulations and investment facilitation – negotiations on the latter have been successfully concluded in July 2023. 

Prior to his election as DG, Azevêdo was the Brazilian Ambassador to the WTO. He was Brazil’s chief negotiator in trade talks and chief litigator in trade disputes. He both chaired and served as adjudicator on WTO panels. He held several leadership posts in the Brazilian Foreign Ministry including as Undersecretary for Economic Affairs, Head of the Economic Department and Director of the Dispute Settlement Office.  

Azevêdo graduated from the University of Brasília with a degree on Electrical Engineering.  He also has a degree from Instituto Rio Branco, the Brazilian graduate school on diplomacy. He lives in Greenwich, CT, with his wife, Ambassador Maria Nazareth Farani de Azevêdo. They have two daughters and six granddaughters.