Xiaomi announces new CFO and expansion in Brazil

Xiaomi has announced its Mi branding for a launch in Brazil. VP Hugo Barra is boasting the hashtag #MiBrasilChegou to celebrate the Chinese manufacturer's debut in South America and even made the live announcement on stage and in front of a crowd of spectators. Not only will the Mi Band, Redmi 2, and Mi Power Bank go on sale in Brazil, but they will also be manufactured locally.

During the event, Barra an nounced that Xiaomi would be partnering with Foxconn to assemble smartphones near the city of Sao Paulo. This would be the first partnership between the two companies outside of China. The Redmi 2 is already well on its way through the Brazilian assembly line and can currently be pre-ordered for 499 BRL (145 Euros). This is compared to 700 Yuan (100 Euros) for the same phone in China. The Mi Power Bank holds 10400 mAh of power and will be available immediately for the equivalent of 29 Euros in Brazil. Finally, the Mi fitness band will retail for the equivalent of 27 Euros.

Barra ends the event by stating that Brazil is only the beginning of the company's ambitious expansion efforts in Latin America. As the world's fifth largest smartphone manufacturer, the next "logical" step according to Barra will be Mexico and Colombia. To help lead the way, the VP introduced Shou Zi Chew as the new CFO of Xiaomi. Chew is a native Singaporean who was previously part of the Russian investment firm DST Global.

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