Rafael Alfonzo is an entrepreneur with more than 20 years' experience operating and investing in PE-backed businesses. The son of immigrants, he began his career as an officer in the US Marine Corps in order to serve the country that welcomed his family. Prior to starting his first business venture, he practiced law at an AmLaw 100 firm focusing on corporate compliance and litigation.

Rafael is the Founder and Managing Partner of Bell Rock Legacy Partners, an investment group that acquires and manages promising small businesses. He currently serves on the board of First Mutual Holding Company, a $3 billion bank holding company dedicated to helping its affiliate mutual banks prosper and serve their communities. He is also member of YPO, where he previously served as the Washington DC Chapter Chair.

 

Rafael previously served as CEO of a PE-backed, IT services company committed to the digital transformation of the restaurant industry. He also co-founded and served as President of a PE-backed, commercial solar energy developer and independent power producer.  In private law practice, Rafael represented public corporations and financial institutions in a wide range of government investigations. He also advised boards of directors and audit committees on matters of corporate governance and internal investigations. In the Marines, Rafael served as a military prosecutor in Japan, a military justice advisor in Colombia, a law of war advisor in SE Asia, as well as the Officer-in-Charge of a humanitarian aid unit providing healthcare assistance in remote areas of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

Rafael is a graduate of the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management, and The George Washington University Law School.