Reina Irene Mejía Chacón, a Honduran citizen, has served as executive vice president since December 16, 2020. She also served as president a.i. from September 26 to December 18, 2022.

In her role as Executive Vice President (EVP), she is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the IDB and oversees the quality control and risk management of all Bank operations. She serves as chair of Management committees responsible for the Bank’s operational activities and provides oversight and direction to the Vice Presidents and all other senior staff.  

Prior to joining the IDB, she spent nearly 25 years at Citibank Honduras, serving as CEO and Corporate and Investment Bank Head since 2013. She also served as President of the Boards of Citi Crédito and Citi Inmobiliaria, and as Secretary of the Board of Banco de Honduras, since 2014. In 2017, she became Secretary of the Board of Grupo Financiero Citibank Costa Rica.

Among several roles prior to her appointment as CEO, Ms. Mejía served as Institutional Clients Group Director for Honduras and Nicaragua as well as Corporate Business and Public Sector Head. During her tenure at Citibank, she was a central actor in all major corporate transactions, supporting all clients. Ms. Mejía also served as President of the Honduran American Chamber of Commerce and Vice President of the Association of American Chambers of Commerce in Latin America and the Caribbean (AACCLA) in the years before joining the IDB. Among positions in her early career, she was General Manager of FUNDES Honduras, a consultancy firm specializing in the development of MSMEs.

In addition, Ms. Mejía has held Board positions or senior roles at several other financial and educational institutions in Honduras and has been active in a range of women’s business-leadership initiatives. She also founded and worked for more than a decade as treasurer of the Honduras chapter of Operation Smile, which has helped more than 5,000 children by providing surgeries to correct cleft lip and palate.

In 2021 and 2018, she was selected by Forbes Centroamérica among the women leaders who are making a difference at the national and international levels in the field of business, multilateral organizations, science, and sports.

Strategy and Business magazine named Ms. Mejía one of the most influential women in the region in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Mrs. Mejia holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA from Southern Illinois University.  She has completed additional graduate courses in Leadership and Customer-Centric Growth from Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania.