In the dynamic and ever-evolving world of startups and business ventures, women leaders have been leaving an indelible mark with their exemplary leadership and determination. Sheer resilience and ability to adapt to change, navigate challenges, and maintain a growth mindset have been instrumental in their success. One such inspiring business leader, co-author, and speaker is Cristina Sampaio Teixeira. Her extraordinary journey is a testament to her unwavering determination, passion, and commitment to lifelong learning.
Cristina is the founder of 2A International Tax Advisors, with offices in Miami and Sao Paulo, Brazil, and of ASTRIDE, a startup providing 100% digital accounting and international tax services in the US. She specializes in US tax advisory for international clients moving to, investing or living in the US. In 2017, she was nominated as one of the Women in Tax Leaders in the guide published by International Tax Review. She is also the co-author of the book “How to Deal with Taxes in the US,” published by the American Chamber of Commerce in Brazil. She has articles published by International Tax Review and was a speaker of Eurofinance (The Economist Group), KPMG and EB-5 conferences in the US and various Latin American countries.
Pivotal Experiences that Helped Shape a Successful Career
Born and brought up in Brazil, Cristina moved to Michigan, US, as an exchange student at the age of 17. Her host family at that time played a huge role in making the transition experience one of the most rewarding ones of her life. At the age of 21, she started her career as a tax advisor with Arthur Andersen in Brazil. For Cristina, it was an absolute honor to have worked there for 7 years.
At Cisco, Cristina enhanced her knowledge and skills from some of the best leaders. After that, she found DuPont’s professional development culture to be extraordinary. Under DuPont’s fast-track development program, Cristina was given a new challenge every two years, allowing her to elevate her leadership potential, inspire confidence, and drive impactful change. Even to this day, she applies the lessons learned from those experiences to manage a large team and work and have a lot of fun while doing it.
Finally, in 2013, Cristina left her job at DuPont and started her first company – a tax consulting firm in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Even though it was hard leaving, DuPont became Cristina’s first client, and, to this day, she cherishes their friendship.
On a personal front, meeting her husband, Rafael and later becoming a mum to two boys, Victor and Tomas, are Cristina’s greatest source of joy in life. Cristina and her family moved back to Miami permanently in 2015.
The Inception Story
While Cristina was running her boutique international tax consulting firm for 2.5 years in Miami, she started thinking of ways to escalate the business while keeping a high standard of service. Her experience at other companies have showed her that no matter how large the companies were, the number of errors and the lack of a standardized process was shocking. On top of that, it was also clear to her how under-serviced international clients were in the US. This brought home the message that automation was the only way to continue growing the number of client services while keeping an acceptable work-life balance. This led her to invite two tech friends to join her to create a digital platform combining what other existing platforms offer in the US, but focused on international clients, as an all-in-one solution. At the end of 2020, ASTRIDE was born as a smart international digital tax and accounting platform offering services to Brazilian individuals investing in the financial market in the US.
ASTRIDE US
ASTRIDE offers the most efficient tax solutions to simplify and optimize the lives of those who wish to invest or reside in the United States. Based on its team’s 28 years of experience, ASTRIDE automates its services to offer agile, secure, and low-cost solutions. The digital accounting and international tax services platform transforms complex international accounting and taxation issues into products capable of guiding which structure is the most intelligent for the clients’ case, allowing them to protect their future and their heirs. “Our mission is to offer intelligent tax structures and all tax & accounting services related to these structures to individuals investing internationally or living abroad at an affordable price,” states Cristina Teixeira, Co-founder and CEO of ASTRIDE.
Moreover, ASTRIDE’s team comprises experienced tech entrepreneurs, accountants, lawyers, and leaders who have come together to make a difference in the US tax accountancy space. They are guided by the principles of ethics, accountability, empathy, industry leadership, technical knowledge, standardization and 100% automation to drive ASTRIDE’s strategic growth and success. The team’s fluency in English, Portuguese, and Spanish further enhances ASTRIDE’s ability to serve a global clientele effectively. In a short span of time, ASTRIDE has managed to seamlessly integrate advanced technologies into its solutions while ensuring they remain user-friendly. The team has achieved this by working on the front-end interface with the user in their native language and by adding non-technical, clear explanations of complicated international tax matters.
What Makes ASTRIDE US Unique?
One of the qualities that make ASTRIDE US unique is that it is the only tool being developed to provide 100% digital international tax and accounting services. In addition, ASTRIDE is known for providing personalized and differentiated services to clients in multiple jurisdictions. The platform asks questions to users, and, depending on their answers, Cristina and her team recommend the best solution to them.
Creating a Culture of Reward & Recognition
As a seasoned leader with a progressive mindset, Cristina doesn’t believe in micromanaging her team. She allows complete freedom to them to utilize their creativity, resources, and experience to help them meet their goals. She also believes in rewarding and recognizing her team beyond financial gains. She bestows credit on every single team member’s effort and dedication to ASTRIDE’s success. Last but not least, she is a big supporter of flexibility, especially for working moms and dads who have another full-time job at home.
Significant Milestone
For Cristina and her team, being able to incorporate an entity in the British Virgin Islands in less than 24 hours while providing a world-class service has been a very significant milestone since ASTRIDE went live 1 year ago.
Commitment to Lifelong Learning
As a lifelong learner, Cristina started her Master of Accounting with an emphasis in US tax at the same time she joined Berkowitz Pollack Brant – BPB, a CPA Firm in Florida, in 2016. She sat for her 4 CPA exams in 4 consecutive months and passed them all, also in 2016, shortly after she joined BPB. Even though it was extremely hard to juggle all while having two young kids at home, the master’s degree allowed her to fast-track her learning of US International tax and fulfill her goal.
For someone who believes that there is no limit to what one can learn and improve, Cristina is excited to start a course at Northwestern – Kellog: AI Applications for Growth this September and also plans to apply to the Stanford Executive Program to continue evolving as a leader in 2024.
Global Expansion Plans
In October 2023, ASTRIDE is launching its second service: Tax and Accounting services for individuals investing in Real Estate in the US. Before the end of this year, Cristina and her team are also launching ASTRIDE in Europe, with the first service being offered for Brazilians interested in moving to Portugal using the Non-Habitual Residency tax regime. Likewise, they look forward to expanding their services to Mexicans and Colombians investing in the US.
A bit further down the road, Cristina sees ASTRIDE as more than a digital tax and accounting platform. “We will be a marketplace, a one-stop shop where our clients can get all they need, including opening bank accounts, obtaining mortgages, getting financial advisors’ referrals, real estate sales associates referrals, among many others,” concludes Cristina.
For More Info: https://www.astride.us/
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