Catalina Bretón

General Manager & Co-founder Nu Colombia at Nubank

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Catalina Bretón's Summary

Catalina is an Executive Leader & Startup Co-founder with over 20 years of experience building companies, crafting product experiences, shaping consumer brands, and nurturing teams to drive transformation and growth in the technology (fintech) and airline sectors across Colombia and Latin America. She is renowned for her role as the co-founder and former General Manager of Nu Colombia (Nubank), where she led the construction, launch, and exponential growth of Nu Colombia from concept to the forefront of the market. Under her leadership, Nu became the fastest-growing credit card issuer in the country with over 600,000 highly satisfied customers, 450 engaged employees, a disruptive fintech product experience, a strong and influential brand, and was recognized for providing the best customer experience in Colombia. Prior to her tenure at Nubank, Catalina co-founded and served as the General Manager of Wingo Airlines, orchestrating the launch, development, and success of the airline, transforming a struggling full-service operation into a thriving low-cost carrier. She led the company from the very early days, defining the business strategy, through the construction and implementation of the business plan, until surpassing all expectations by flying 2 million customers, and earning accolades as the most disruptive brand in Colombia, as well as the best low-cost carrier in Latin America for two consecutive years (and the third in the world during those same years!). Before her entrepreneurial ventures, Catalina had a successful 12-year corporate career in the airline industry, holding progressive leadership roles at Avianca Airlines based in Bogotá, where she made significant contributions to the company’s turnaround, management, planning, and strategy. Additionally, she served as the Head of Planning and Commercial for Latin America at Jetblue Airways based in New York City, where she oversaw all international launches, as well as all sales, marketing, and PR efforts in the Region. Catalina holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá and an MBA focused on strategy, leadership, and marketing from Columbia University in New York City. She is recognized as one of Colombia’s 45 under 45 Most Transformational Women (2023), among the 50 Most Powerful Women (2021, 2022), and has been honored as one of the Best General Managers (2018, 2022) and CEOs of The Future (2018).