Yasmin Rodrigues Hund

INSEAD

“Brazilian-German dealmaker with a passion for M&A, yoga and theater.”

Hometown: Jundiaí, São Paulo, Brazil

Fun Fact About Yourself: Even though I pursued a finance career since I was in college, my personal interests have nothing to do with finance. I was part of a theater group in São Paulo for several years and being on stage is one of my biggest passions. I am also absolutely fascinated about yoga and meditation and I try to bring the yoga philosophy into every aspect of my life.

Undergraduate School and Major: FGV EAESP – Bachelor in Business Administration

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: M&A & Corp Dev Specialist at Mercado Bitcoin

INSEAD is one of the most culturally and professionally diverse MBA programs in the world. How do you see these global perspectives enhancing the value of your business education over the next year? In my opinion, the greatest value of embarking on a top school MBA is expanding the horizons by having a global experience, with international students from different backgrounds. This pushes people out of their comfort zone and brings business education to another level. This intangible aspect of the MBA program is what thrills me the most. This goes far beyond the academic experience itself and it is evident that leaders with an international background tend to be able to see the challenges from broader perspectives.

Additionally, during the past few years working in the fintech space, the relevance of having an internationally-oriented mindset and a global network became even more evident to me.

Why did you choose a one-year program over a two-year program? How do you see an INSEAD MBA giving you an advantage in the marketplace? To me, the one-year program was the optimal choice. It will allow me to gain a comprehensive global business education without a significant career interruption. I wanted to have a year in which I would be fully immersed in a global experience and get the most out of it to more quickly return to the job market. I believe the experience is more intense than in a two-year program and I will also be more committed to make the most out of it.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of INSEAD’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? To me, it was definitely the international positioning. From everyone I have talked to, I got the sense that INSEAD has the most diverse and international student body. Getting out of my comfort zone meeting people from different backgrounds and geographies is the most valuable experience in my opinion.

What course, club or activity excites you the most at INSEAD? I am very excited about the whole coaching process because I believe sharing insights on my future plans and learning from other people’s experience is super valuable. I am also eager to start exchanging experiences and insights with the Fintech & Web3 club. I was happy when I found out about this club, since this subject played a key role in my life during the past 3 years and I really want to contribute to the ecosystem. Additionally, I am also very excited for the classes focused on themes such as organizational behavior. I have heard about them from many students and I believe it will be great for me to expand my skills since I have a purely financial background.

What has been your first impression of the INSEAD MBA students and alumni you’ve met so far. Tell us your best INSEAD story so far. My first impression of INSEAD MBA students and alumni is that they are driven, intellectually curious, and globally minded. I am very impressed by how many international experiences many students have already had – even though my expectations were already high on that matter. Besides that, it is also very fascinating to see how many exotic hobbies and interests both alumni and students have. It is rare to meet someone who does not have a strong personality and diverse interests apart from their professional life. It is truly inspiring.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: The most relevant challenge I managed to overcome were my years at Mercado Bitcoin. When I joined the company in 2021, the M&A area still did not exist and I had been working with M&A for just under 3 years. So, being the first team member with the mission of building all the processes involved in both dealmaking and post-merger integration was a huge challenge. We made several acquisitions and created the corporate venture capital vertical from scratch. After almost 2 years, I also took over some investor relations activities – which were also completely new to me. Now, looking back and seeing how everything evolved in the company since then, I am extremely proud of myself and the team.

What do you hope to do after graduation (at this point)? I want to continue working in the finance industry, with something related to what I was already doing before – either dealmaking or fundraising. I hope to work in a more internationally-oriented role right after graduating. In the long term, I want to go back to Brazil and have a relevant impact on the local fundraising ecosystem – in which I see huge potential. But to do that, I still want to increase my experience by working abroad for a couple of years.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into INSEAD’s MBA program? It is crucial to know yourself and deeply understand your motivators and the common line that connects all the different aspects from your life. Go beyond the obvious and beyond the professional achievements. Understanding how my passions and every aspect of my life converged to make who I am was very important to me. It allowed me to build a strong personal and professional narrative. To achieve that, it is important to spend time on reflections and brainstorming. During my process, I counted on some mentors who really helped me see the value of aspects of my life I was not even considering.

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