Salles’ late father, Walther Moreira Salles, was the founder of Unibanco, a Brazilian bank that merged with Banco Itau in 2008. Today, Itau Unibanco SA is the second largest bank in Brazil and Joao Moreira Salles is one of the largest individual shareholders of Itau Unibanco SA. Joao Moreira Salles also serves as the president of Instituto Moreira Salles, a non-profit foundation founded by Walter in 1990 and managed by the Moreira Salles family. The purpose behind the foundation is promotion and development of cultural projects in the areas of photography, literature, libraries, visual arts, and Brazilian music. His two brothers, Walter, Pedro and Fernando Roberto, are also billionaires.
