The Team
Our
Team
Luis Felipe Paz
Managing Director
Mr. Paz has extensive experience in the investment banking industry. He has participated in the completion of 30+ M&A transactions of mid-market companies in a wide variety of industries. Prior to joining Emerge, Mr. Paz worked in Wealth Management, Financial Advisory and Securities Brokerage at Valores MexicanosCasa de Bolsa (BAL Group) as investment advisor, optimizing investment portfolios based on the Efficient Frontier Model and Asset Allocation analysis, where he conducted ECM, DCM and Forex transactions. Mr. Paz is an Investment Advisor certified by the AMIB (Mexican Association of Stock Brokers). Luis Felipe graduated with honors from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) Santa Fe with a BS in Financial Management. Mr. Paz also promotes entrepreneurial activity serving as Endeavor's mentor.
Víctor Mendoza
Managing Director
Victor has 15 years of experience in the financial sector, most recently as Investment Banking Vice President at Evercore Mexico where he actively participated in public financing transactions such as Fibra E CFE’s USD$860 million IPO and Fibra Hotel’s USD$250 million second follow on, among several other private M&A and capital raising transactions. Prior to Evercore Partners, Victor worked as Structured Credit VP at SHF, a Mexican development bank, and previously, as an Alternative Investment & Corporate Credit Analyst in SURA Investment Management, one of Mexico’s largest pension funds. Victor holds a B.A. in Financial Management from Tecnológico de Monterrey (ITESM) and a Masters in Finance from London Business School (LBS).
John Walker
Managing Director
John has more than 20 years of experience in corporate finance, specifically in private equity investments and M&A transactions in Latin America. He is a Managing Partner at Dracma, where they provide investment strategy services in the local market, as well as in developed markets.. Prior to this, he worked as a Financial Planning Manager at Grupo Modelo in the Retail Division. Previously, he worked for AmitechLatinAmerica as Finance Manager and prior to this he served as Senior Auditor at PWC. He currently serves as a member of the board of directors for Mexican and Argentine companies and as a mentor for Endeavor. He obtained an MBA from the University of Texas (UT) in Austin and is a Certified Public Accountant from the National University of Córdoba, Argentina. He is an adjunct professor of corporate finance in the UT MBA program in Mexico City and is a candidate for the CFA level III exam.
Iván Cancino
Vice President
Mr. Cancino has successfully advised fundraising and M&A transactions in infrastructure, agribusiness sectors and IT industries. He has worked on financial valuations for companies in different industries ranging from footwear to entertainment. Prior to joining Emerge, Mr. Cancino was a Corporate Finance Intern at Intercam Grupo Financiero. Mr. Cancino is an Investment Advisor certified by the AMIB (Mexican Association of Stock Brokers) and completed the CFA Level III in June 2018. Iván graduated from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) Edo de México with a BS in Financial Management. Mr. Cancino studied abroad for one semester at IÉSEG School of Management in France.
José Ramon Santos
Senior Analyst
José Ramón has participated in the different stages of advisory in M&A transactions and supported in the development of financial models, company presentations, and confidential information memorandums. Before joining Emerge’s team, José Ramón worked as a finance intern in Johnson & Johnson LATAM. He was certified by the AMIB (Mexican Association of Stock Brokers) as an Investment Advisor and completed a BS in Financial Administration at Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM).
Miguel Rodriguez
Analyst
Miguel joined Emerge in 2023, after graduating with a B.S. in Financial Management from Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM). Prior to joining Emerge, Miguel completed a full-time internship in Investar Financial, a Dallas-based family office, where he supported a total of USD$22M in private equity investments. Before that, he was part of a Search Fund, where he helped analyze lower-middle market companies in Mexico. Miguel is also certified by the AMIB (Mexican Association of Stock Brokers) as an Investment Advisor.
The Team
Advisory
Board
Alejandro Creel
Consultant and Board Member
Alejandro Creel currently serves as Managing Partner of Alcrecob y Asociados S.C., a firm that provides financial advisory primarly in Investment Banking, Corporate Finance and Restructuring. He served as CEO of Casa de Bolsa Inverlat where he was responsible for financial relationships with private sector companies. Prior to that, he was CEO of Grupo Fin being responsible for the development of financial companies such as Factoring, Venture Capital Investment and Foreign Exchange brokerage. Aljeandro Creel has extensive experience in the financial industry with over three decades of experience in executive positions. Currently he serves as a board member for Mexican companies such as Grupo Salinas y Rocha, S.A. de C.V., ING Seguros, S.A. de C.V., Synkro, S.A. de C.V., among others. Alejandro has a degree in Business Administration from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) and has a diploma in Banking Law from Universidad Iberoamericana.
Alfonso Rodriguez
Consultant and Board Member
Alfonso Rodriguez serves as shareholder and director of the firms Finest Business Consulting and Novations. Both firms have presence in Mexico and are part of the major companies published in the Fortune 500. From 2003 to 2010, Alfonso was shareholder and CEO of The Friedman Group, specialized in strategic consulting for Retailing Businesses. From 1998 to 2000 he was CEO of the private distance education company Hemphill Schools / Universal Systems. He was also CEO and board member for eleven years of Woolworth Mexicana, retailer of general merchandise retail. Alfonso was a member of the Board of Directors and the Advisory Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico, A.C. Currently he is Member of the Board of Directors of Grupo Bafar SAB de C.V., Member of the Advisory Council of Pabisan S.A. de C.V. and Mentor of Endeavor.
Ernesto Alcalde
Consultant and Board Member
Ernesto Alcalde has been CFO for several international and Mexican companies including Grupo Modelo(MXK:GMODELOC). Mr. Alcalde previously worked as CFO for Panamerican Beverages , Admiral Group, Otis Elevators and Dow Chemical Mexico among others. Mr. Alcalde has extensive industry knowledge, with over three decades of experience in executive positions, focused in corporate finance and merger and acquisitions deals throughout the Latin America region. Mr. Alcalde earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, and is a graduate of the MBA Program at Universidad de las Americas and New York University.