Pepe Carrillo
Fractional General Counsel
Barcelona, Spain · [email protected] · +1 347 770 0838
pepecarrillo.co · linkedin.com/in/pepecarrillo
Summary
Fractional General Counsel for founders, investors and operators in Africa, Latin America and Europe. Former Group General Counsel of Sand Technologies and ALX. About $6B in transactions, $500M raised and 25 countries over a career in corporate finance, M&A and fundraising. Built and led legal, compliance, risk and privacy across 18 countries on 3 continents with a team of about 10 lawyers. Legal 500 GC Powerlist, East Africa, 2024 and 2025.
Selected achievements
- Closed the Mastercard Foundation partnership for African Leadership Group, about $350M across three institutions (2020).
- Led the acquisitions of Holberton, Synaflux and Explore AI, taking the group's operations into the United States and the European Union.
- Ran two carve-outs of operating businesses into standalone non-profit foundations: African Leadership University (2019) and ALX (2024).
Experience
Mexzungu Group, Barcelona2026 to present
Founder and Fractional General Counsel
- Fractional general counsel and deal counsel to founders and investors in emerging markets: fundraising, M&A, cross-border structuring and governance.
- Helped a Rwandan startup raise about $1.5M (2026).
- Built AI-native legal and operations tools for the practice and its clients.
African Leadership Group to Sand Technologies2017 to 2025
Pan-African education and technology group: African Leadership University, ALX and Sand Technologies.
Head of Expansion, AI-native BPO, Sand Technologies2025
- Moved from the legal role to launch Sand's AI-native outsourcing business, scoping delivery hubs in Kenya, Mauritius and South Africa.
Group General Counsel, Sand Technologies2023 to 2024
- Led legal, compliance, risk and privacy across 18 countries on 3 continents (US, UK, EU, Africa) with a team of about 10 lawyers.
- Acquired Synaflux, a Romanian technology consultancy, and Explore AI, an AI consulting and education business, turning the group into a technology and consulting company with operations in the EU and US.
- Carved ALX out into a standalone non-profit foundation as Sand became the group's operating company.
- Launched JANIS, an in-house ticketing system for legal and shared services across a decentralized organization.
Head of Legal, Compliance, Risk and Privacy, ALX and The ROOM2020 to 2022
- Closed the Mastercard Foundation partnership for the whole group: about $350M ($225M ALX, $100M ALU, $25M African Leadership Academy).
- Acquired Holberton, the Silicon Valley-founded coding school (2022).
- In a dual role as VP of Expansion (2022), launched ALX in Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Ghana and Rwanda.
General Counsel, African Leadership University; then General Counsel and VP Corporate Development, ALX2017 to 2020
- Secured ALU's first institutional loan, $5M from a New York fund, and closed a $30M Series B.
- Structured the project finance for the Rwanda campus, including a first-of-its-kind education real estate bond that let a government pension fund invest.
- Carved ALU out into a standalone non-profit foundation as ALX launched (2019).
Chadbourne & Parke LLP (now Norton Rose Fulbright), Mexico City2010 to 2016
Associate, Senior Associate, then led the Corporate Finance practice
- About $5B in corporate finance transactions with zero broken deals, for clients including Goldman Sachs, ENGIE and Nissan.
- Lead contact for listed clients before the CNBV (securities regulator) and the Mexican Stock Exchange.
- Led the Corporate Finance practice after an office reorganization.
Earlier2007 to 2016
- Professor of Corporate Law, Business Law and Negotiable Instruments, Tecnológico de Monterrey (2014 to 2016).
- Associate, capital markets, Basila Abogados (2009 to 2010).
- Associate, corporate, Noriega y Escobedo (2008 to 2009).
- Intern, Banco de México (2007 to 2008).
Education and admission
- Yale School of Management, Master of Advanced Management, 2017.
- Tecnológico de Monterrey, Master in International Law, 2010.
- Tecnológico de Monterrey, Law degree (Licenciatura en Derecho), 2008.
- Admitted to practice law in Mexico, 2008.
- Languages: English and Spanish (native), French (basic).
Recognition and writing
- Legal 500 GC Powerlist, East Africa, 2024 and 2025.
- Co-author: Venture Capital Investment in Mexico; Private Equity in Mexico; 2014 Project Finance Report: Mexico.
- Writes The Outlaw Chronicles, a weekly newsletter on deals and building outside the lines.