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Around half of Latin America’s largest corporates are family owned or controlled, with the figure higher in certain countries, particularly when not accounting for local affiliates of US and European transnationals.
One particular pitfall for family-controlled companies is succession risk, in LatAm and elsewhere. We were reminded again this week when Brazilian steelmaker CSN announced CEO Benjamin Steinbruch (73) — and part of the controlling family — will step down after 24 years in the role, to be replaced by former Vale CEO Fabio Schvartsman. The company’s board approved Steinbruch as chair, a position he held from 1995 to 2023. Bonds and shares reacted well to the announcement, with notes indicated 1.4 to 2.4 points higher and the stock up by as much as 20%.
During Steinbruch’s CEO run, CSN went from being a largely domestic steelmaker with $1.28bn in annual revenue to an $8.31bn-per-year multinational, with strategic assets in the US and Europe. But most recently, debt reduction and asset optimization has taken precedence over further expansion. Further, asset divestment wasn’t moving fast enough for investors. As of H1 26, consolidated debt reached $10.51bn, net debt $7.88bn, and net leverage stood at 3.4x — an improvement...
