Chrystian Gabriel Colombo (born 1952) is an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

businessman and politician who served as

Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers The chief of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Argentine Nation (; JGM), more commonly known simply as the Cabinet chief () is a Ministries of the Argentine Republic, ministerial office within the Government of Argentina, government of Argentina t ...

during the presidency of

Fernando de la Rúa Fernando de la Rúa (15 September 19379 July 2019) served as the President of Argentina from 1999 until his resignation in 2001. A member of the Radical Civic Union, he previously served as national senator for Buenos Aires across non-consecuti ...

, from 2000 to 2001. He served as cabinet chief during the December 2001 riots, and resigned alongside De la Rúa in their aftermath.

Early life

Colombo was born in 1952 in

Zapala Zapala is a city and touristic destination in the Patagonian province of Neuquén, Argentina with about 32,000 inhabitants according to the . The city is located at the geographic center of the province at the confluence of national and provincia ...

Neuquén Province Neuquén () is a Provinces of Argentina, province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza Province to the north, Rio Negro Province to the southeast, and Chile to the west. It also me ...

. He graduated with a

licenciatura A licentiate (abbreviated Lic.) is an academic degree present in many countries, representing different educational levels. The Licentiate (Pontifical Degree) is a post graduate degree when issued by pontifical universities and other universit ...

degree on economics from the

Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina The Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina (), also known as Catholic University of Argentina (; UCA), is a private university in Argentina with campuses in the cities of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, Rosario, Paraná, Mendoza and Pergamino. The ...

(UCA).

Political career

During the presidency of

Raúl Alfonsín Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín (; 12 March 1927 – 31 March 2009) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1983 to 8 July 1989. He was the first democratically elected president after the 7-yea ...

, in June 1985, Colombo was appointed as president of the Banco Nacional de Desarrollo (BANADE), in replacement of Mario Brodersohn. Later, Colombo worked in the private sector as part of Gupo Pérez Companc, as a

stockbroker A stockbroker is an individual or company that buys and sells stocks and other investments for a financial market participant in return for a commission, markup, or fee. In most countries they are regulated as a broker or broker-dealer and ...

in the

Buenos Aires Stock Exchange The Buenos Aires Stock Exchange (BCBA; ) is the organization responsible for the operation of Economy of Argentina, Argentina's primary stock exchange located at Buenos Aires central business district. Founded in 1854, it is the successor to the ' ...

, as vice president of the Sociedad de la Bolsa Macro, and as manager of the Banco Río de la Plata (later Banco Santander Río) stock market. In 1999, upon the election of

as president of Argentina, Colombo was appointed as president of the

Banco de la Nación Argentina Banco de la Nación Argentina (BNA; ) is a large bank in Argentina, and the largest in the country's banking sector. History The Bank of the Argentine Nation was founded on 18 October 1891 by President Carlos Pellegrini, with the purpose of st ...

, the country's national bank. Just a year later, on 6 October 2000, De la Rúa appointed Colombo as

, in replacement of Rodolfo Terragno. Under Colombo's leadership, Ricardo López Murphy was designated at the helm of the Ministry of Economy following the resignation of

José Luis Machinea José Luis Machinea (born October 5, 1946) is an Argentine economist and United Nations official. He was Minister of Economy and President of the Central Bank. Career Machinea was born in Buenos Aires, and earned a degree in Economics from the ...

. Colombo was also investigated for

embezzlement Embezzlement (from Anglo-Norman, from Old French ''besillier'' ("to torment, etc."), of unknown origin) is a type of financial crime, usually involving theft of money from a business or employer. It often involves a trusted individual taking ...

of public funds diverted from the Banco Nación and to the private-owned Banco Macro. In 2001, he was denounced by the Anti-Corruption Bureau for mishandling of public funds during his time as president of the Banco Nación; further charges were presented before the National Senate in 2002. Colombo remained in the position until De la Rúa's abrupt resignation on 20 December 2001, and was the last public official to leave the

Casa Rosada The ''Casa Rosada'' (), , is the president of the Argentine Republic's official workplace, located in Buenos Aires. The palatial mansion is known officially as ''Casa de Gobierno'' ("House of Government" or "Government House"). Normally, the pre ...

in the aftermath of the December 2001 riots. Due to Senate provisional president (and acting president)

Ramón Puerta Federico Ramón Puerta (; born 9 September 1951) is an Argentine Peronist politician who has served as a governor, national senator and deputy and briefly as President of Argentina in 2001. Biography Puerta was born in Apóstoles, Misiones P ...

being in San Luis at the time, Colombo managed "security and minimal administrative affairs of the State until the situation was resolved" in the early hours of 21 December.

Personal life

Colombo is married to visual artist Silvia Rivas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colombo, Chrystian 1952 births Living people Argentine bankers Radical Civic Union politicians Chiefs of Cabinet of Ministers of Argentina People from Neuquén Province Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina alumni