A long streak of unexpected drops — followed by a slight rebound. The U.S. dollar's exchange rate in the early months of 2025 has been unstable, leading many Brazilians to wonder: When is the best time to start building wealth in dollars?
For some, the dilemma goes even further: Why build financial wealth in U.S. dollars? Is that strategy right for me?
We brought some of the most common questions to Michelle Veronesi, founder and CEO of Glina. With over 20 years of experience in the financial market, leading major sales and product teams, Michelle is an expert in offshore product structuring.
Read her insights below.
- After a series of declines, the dollar started rising again. Would you recommend waiting for it to drop again before starting to protect wealth in dollars?
Michelle: Eu costumo dizer que o melhor dia pra construir patrimônio em dólar foi ontem. Me pergunte amanhã e te responderei o mesmo. É simples assim. Quem ainda não começou esse movimento, tem que começar agora. Não tem de esperar uma nova baixa. - What’s the logic behind your recommendation? Why doesn’t it make sense to wait? Michelle: The market is constantly changing and largely unpredictable. The strategy is to invest gradually to mitigate the impact of sudden increases. By investing consistently, you can achieve a good overall performance. From 2013 to 2022, the dollar appreciated an average of 10% per year against the real. Those with global assets captured that additional gain. If Brazil itself holds reserves in dollars, why shouldn’t we, as individuals? According to a J.P. Morgan report, 60% of the world’s reserves are in dollars.
- So, is it fair to say, “If you don’t convert, you’re not protecting”? Michelle: More and more studies and data support what I’ve been advocating for over 20 years in the financial market: protecting part of your wealth in a strong currency is a logical strategy. The recommendation isn’t to convert 100% of your assets — but having a portion of your portfolio in foreign currency is essential to help protect your purchasing power in the face of real depreciation. A recent study by FGV (Getulio Vargas Foundation) found that at least 16% of Brazilian financial wealth should be in a strong currency. More aggressively, Itaú Unibanco recently revised its guidance, suggesting that up to 45% of a portfolio should be exposed to foreign assets.
- When you talk about wealth protection, what other factors are involved beyond the exchange rate? Michelle: Protection isn’t just about exchange rates. Every Brazilian should have access to offshore structures located in more stable territories — this helps mitigate risks like potential legal and tax instability, which are more common in developing countries.
What advice would you give to someone who’s still not convinced about protecting their wealth? Michelle: I’d say: do more research. Brazilians have one of the strongest “home bias” tendencies when it comes to building wealth — according to a study by the International Monetary Fund published by U.S. brokerage Charles Schwab. We’ll only change this by becoming informed and exploring alternatives. International portfolio diversification improves the risk-return ratio by reducing overall portfolio risk. That’s another insight from the FGV study I mentioned. It also allows for allocating assets across regions like Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania — which minimizes the impact of local crises and creates opportunities to benefit from regional growth. It’s time for Brazilians to open up to these opportunities.
