Miguel Pereira de Melo

Client facing leader across Iberia. Business development, client onboarding, customer success and complex delivery. Luxembourg based.

Based in Luxembourg Fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English Working on my French Web3 since 2016

Who I am

I am a client facing leader with two decades of experience across Portugal and Spain, built on business development, onboarding and delivery, always at the intersection of people, expectations and execution. I thrive when I am the bridge: I listen deeply, translate complexity into clear action, align stakeholders and follow through until outcomes are real.

I am also deeply aspirational by nature. I feel we are living through a generational transformation in how we coordinate, create and exchange value. I stay close to that shift not as a spectator but as a participant. Since 2016 I have lived Web3 personally through blockchain, DeFi and the communities around them. I believe tomorrow’s world will be powered by AI, running on blockchain with a Web3 interface, yet what will always matter most is the human layer: presence, culture, trust, connection and community.

I am committed to working in that human layer. I bring agility across environments, from banking, insurance and regulated operations to fast moving tech, Web3 and crypto. I am looking for the right place to invest my loyalty, time and energy, because for me it only makes sense if I can give everything I have.

Experience

Expansion Manager YUM! Brands, KFC | Lisbon, Portugal | 2020 to 2024

Led national development across Portugal and islands as the sole corporate representative, steering a 40 to 50 opportunity pipeline through long permitting cycles to deliver annual openings
Delivered 50 plus openings and rebalanced the portfolio from mall heavy to drive thru led growth, including a strategic mall to drive thru relocation
Established strong franchisee governance, accelerating decision making on location approval and enabling Portugal to meet and exceed annual targets during COVID, a standout result across EMEA
Built a competitor intelligence model by mapping McDonald’s and Burger King units and annual sales to prioritise territories and de risk site selection

Expansion Manager Papa John’s Portugal | Lisbon, Portugal | 2019 to 2020

Opened the first four company owned units in Portugal, setting the foundations for the brand’s rollout
Built the Lisbon metro expansion plan, mapping priority neighbourhoods and target streets by projected profitability to optimise full delivery coverage
Owned the full lifecycle from site selection and lease negotiation through store opening and facilities maintenance, managing capex, permitting and brand standards end to end

Expansion Manager Restalia Group | Lisbon, Portugal | 2017 to 2019

Managed commercial development and real estate strategy for 100 Montaditos and The Good Burger in Portugal, scaling the footprint from 7 to 24 units
Delivered full investor lifecycle, from pitch deck creation and business model presentation to franchise agreement negotiation and new unit openings
Sourced and secured retail locations, negotiated lease terms and managed project coordination

Account Manager Team Leader BNP Paribas Securities Services | Lisbon, Portugal | 2014 to 2017

Client facing lead for a dedicated team of four servicing Banco Popular within an institutional outsourcing model
Owned settlement and reconciliations, ensuring operational accuracy, timely settlement and swift resolution of breaks
Coordinated delivery across internal teams, consolidating updates and driving issue resolution end to end
Led monthly governance meetings reviewing processes, SLAs, incident themes and service performance, translating insights into concrete improvements
Designed and optimised procedures, documentation and training, strengthening controls, consistency and handovers

Regional Sales Manager EBSCO Information Services | Madrid, Spain | 2013 to 2014

Owned Spain and Portugal portfolio end to end, managing pipeline, executive relationships and annual renewals across biomedical and corporate accounts
Delivered around 400 client visits per year, negotiating renewals and markups, running product presentations and trainings and representing the company at conferences and trade fairs
Partnered with inside sales to execute offers and territory planning, aligning quarterly with EMEA leadership on strategy, forecasting and best practices