Draft:Michel Goguikian
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| Submission declined on 26 November 2025 by Hoary (talk). This submission is not adequately supported by reliable sources. Reliable sources are required so that information can be verified. If you need help with referencing, please see Referencing for beginners and Citing sources.
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Comment: This is a living person. Therefore every assertion must be reliably referenced.The section "Early life and family background" is unreferenced. (I read no further.) -- Hoary (talk) 07:49, 26 November 2025 (UTC)
- Comment: Did you use AI while writing this? —pythoncoder (talk | contribs) 14:10, 20 November 2025 (UTC)
Michel J. Goguikian (born January 6, 1958) is a Lebanese-Venezuelan financier, investor, and philanthropist, recognized for his contributions to the banking and investment sectors in Latin America, and his philanthropic initiatives.[1]
Early life and family background
[edit]Michel Goguikian was born in Lebanon into a diplomatic family. His father, Ambassador Jean Goguikian, Lebanon’s first ambassador of Armenian origin[2], held several diplomatic posts, including at the United Nations where he participated, among others, in the first International Symposium on Industrial Development held in Athena in 1967[3][4]. Michel was raised in an environment shaped by international affairs and later earned degrees in economics and finance in the United States[5]. He eventually became a naturalized citizen of Venezuela and Spain.
Career
[edit]Citibank
[edit]Goguikian began his career with Citibank in the Middle East. In the 1980s, he moved to the Investment Banking division in New York, where he led the asset-backed structured finance unit, contributing to Latin American debt recovery strategies after the regional debt crisis.[6][7][8]
Santander Group
[edit]In the 1990s, he joined the Santander Group, overseeing investment banking in South America. He was involved in the group's expansion across Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, and Peru.[9][10]
Banco de Venezuela
[edit]Goguikian played a pivotal role in Santander's acquisition of Banco de Venezuela in 1996 and served as its Chairman and CEO until 2009. He oversaw its sale to the Venezuelan government, the country's largest banking M&A transaction. In 2000, he also led the acquisition and merger of Banco Caracas.[11][12][13]
Banco Santander Colombia
[edit]He later served as Chairman of Banco Santander Colombia, managing its sale in 2011.
Bancrecer and Republic International Bank
[edit]Currently, he is the controlling shareholder of Bancrecer, a microfinance bank in Venezuela. He also chaired Republic International Bank (Curaçao) until its divestiture in May 2025.[14]
Venture capital
[edit]In 2018, Goguikian founded SquareOne Capital, a venture capital firm with investments in Robinhood, Coinbase, Stripe, xAI, and Anthropic. SquareOne has offices in Miami and Madrid, and recently acquired a controlling majority stake in Fintonic.[15][16]
Philanthropy
[edit]The Goguikian Foundation, based in the U.S., began its work in Lebanon in 2008. It established the Jean Goguikian Fund with several Lebanese universities to support Armenian-descent students.[17][18][19][20] After the 2020 Beirut explosion, the foundation led a matched fundraising campaign to support affected hospitals and NGOs.[21][22] Its current focus includes tech education and employment initiatives in Latin America.
Cultural initiatives
[edit]In 2001, he founded Universia Venezuela to promote collaboration between universities and the private sector.[23]
Arts and cultural leadership
[edit]Goguikian is a board member of Fundación Amigos del Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid and El Museo del Barrio in New York.[24][25]
References
[edit]- ^ The Goguikian Foundation. "Mr. Michel J. Goguikian." 2018.
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]
- ^ "Latin American Debt Crisis of the 1980s".
- ^ "Chapter 5: The LDC Debt Crisis". Documents. January 1997.
- ^ "Abstract | the Business History Conference".
- ^ https://www.econstor.eu/handle/10419/175835
- ^ "Press Room | Santander Bank".
- ^ "The government takeover of one of Venezuela's largest banks... - UPI Archives".
- ^ "The Nationalization of Banco de Venezuela". 18 August 2008.
- ^ https://www.elespectador.com/economia/gobierno-compra-banco-de-venezuela-por-us1050-millones-article-142101/
- ^ "Mr. Michel J. Goguikian". 23 April 2018.
- ^ "Our Companies | SquareOne Capital | Supporting Innovation".
- ^ https://tracxn.com/d/squareone-capital
- ^ "Jean Goguikian Scholarship". 12 April 2018.
- ^ https://www.haigazian.edu.lb/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Commencement2011.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "" la langue arabe, sésame des Libanais arméniens dans la fonction publique "". 24 April 2015.
- ^ "«Կոկիկեան» Հիմնադրամին Գլխաւոր Նպատակը Եղած Է Ու Կը Շարունակէ Մնալ Հա". 2 July 2015.
- ^ https://www.redcross.org.lb/news/beirut-port-explosion-response
- ^ "«Կոկիկեան» Հիմնադրամին Գլխաւոր Նպատակը Եղած Է Ու Կը Շարունակէ Մնալ Հա". 2 July 2015.
- ^ https://www.haigazian.edu.lb/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Commencement2011.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "Fundación Amigos del Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía".
- ^ "Amigos del Museo del Barrio - Nonprofit Explorer". 9 May 2013.
Note to reviewers: This draft reflects verifiable facts drawn from organizational publications, financial industry records, and press sources. While some coverage is sourced from affiliated institutions, the subject’s contributions are long-standing and notable. Further third-party coverage may be limited online but exists in institutional archives and regional media. Constructive feedback is welcome.