Canela Media has appointed veteran media executive José Molina as its new Chief Financial Officer, the company announced Monday.
In his new role, Molina will oversee Canela Media’s financial strategy, operational scaling, and investor relations efforts. The company says his experience managing multi-billion-dollar profit and loss statements, implementing corporate restructuring, and driving profitability across complex media organizations positions him to help lead Canela through its next phase of growth.
Molina will be based in Miami and report directly to Canela Media Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Isabel Rafferty Zavala. He brings more than 20 years of financial leadership experience in Hispanic media to the role, having held senior finance positions at Univision, MundoMax, and most recently Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS), where he served as their Chief Financial Officer.
“We are pleased to welcome José to Canela Media,” Rafferty said in a statement on Monday. “His experience in Hispanic media and proven financial leadership will be a strong asset as we continue scaling the business.”
A licensed CPA since 1997, Molina began his career at KPMG and holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from the University of Florida. He was recognized as one of Miami’s Top 25 CFOs in 2024 and named among the broadcast industry’s top finance leaders for four consecutive years between 2020 and 2023.
“I’m excited to join Canela Media as it continues to innovate, grow its impact and expand its footprint,” Molina said. “Canela’s mission to authentically connect with multicultural audiences while offering brands scalable, data-driven ways to reach them is both timely and meaningful. I look forward to working with the team to strengthen the company’s financial strategy, scale operations, and support its continued leadership in culturally relevant content and innovative advertising solutions.”
Canela has worked to expand its audience growth and engagement over the past few months: In June, the company announced that its free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) ecosystem surpassed six million monthly viewing hours, up 88 percent from 3.2 million hours in June 2024. Its broader ecosystem now reaches 60 million monthly active users.
Canela also recently rolled out “Club Canela,” one of the first loyalty programs for an ad-supported on-demand streaming platform.
