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Assistant Secretary for the Private Sector Office Alfonso Martinez-Fonts

Assistant Secretary Martinez-Fonts onLoad=

Assistant Secretary Martinez-Fonts

On November 27, 2005, Alfonso “Al” Martinez-Fonts, Jr. was appointed Assistant Secretary for the Private Sector Office at the Department of Homeland Security. For the previous two years, Mr. Martinez-Fonts served as Special Assistant to the Secretary for the Private Sector at DHS. As Assistant Secretary, Mr. Martinez-Fonts is charged with providing America’s private sector with a direct line of communication to the Department. He and the Private Sector Office will work directly with individual business and through trade associations and other non-governmental organizations to foster dialogue between the private sector and the Department.

In April 2002, Mr. Martinez-Fonts retired as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of JP Morgan Chase Bank in El Paso, Texas. Before moving to El Paso, he was President of the Bank in San Antonio. He began his 30-year career with Chemical Bank (a JP Morgan Chase predecessor organization) as a management trainee and worked his way through the organization as a lending officer in the Metropolitan Division and the International Division.

He has lived and traveled extensively overseas, including managing Chemical Bank’s offices in Manila, Philippines (1976-1979) and Mexico City, Mexico (1982-1988). He was Regional Manager based in New York of Chemical’s business in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia (1980-1982).

Mr. Martinez-Fonts has served on many boards, including The Greater El Paso Chamber Foundation, Project ARRIBA, ACCION International, and ACCION USA. He was a member of the Frito-Lay Hispanic/Latino Advisory Board, the United Way of El Paso Board, and the University of Texas at El Paso Development Board. In the past he also served on the Fannie Mae Advisory Board and the American Bankers Association Communications Council.

He served as 1993 Chairman of The Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce and 1988 President of The American Chamber of Commerce in Mexico City. He is the 1995 recipient of The National Conference of Christians and Jews Humanitarian Award.

Mr. Martinez-Fonts received his undergraduate degree in political science from Villanova University in 1971 and his MBA in finance from Long Island University in 1974.

This page was last modified on October 12, 2007