Key Takeaways
- Alejandro Gutierrez leads npayme Labs and dApp development for user-focused decentralized finance and digital payments.
- He studied Industrial & Production Engineering, later earning a Master’s in Logistics & Transport Management in Australia.
- Gutierrez started in the supply chain, working in logistics and manufacturing before moving into business analysis and consulting.
Who Is Alejandro Gutierrez?
Alejandro Gutierrez is the CEO of npayme Labs, the main team behind the npayme network, a platform for decentralized apps (dApps) built by its users. He studied Industrial and Production Engineering at Universidad del Norte and later earned a Master’s in Logistics and Transport Management from the University of Sydney. He also completed a business diploma at Kaplan Australia and took part in the Blockchain Strategy Programme at Oxford’s Said Business School in 2019.
Early Career in Supply Chain and Operations
Gutierrez began his career in the import and export industry, working as an operations assistant at Globalog S.A. from 2003 to 2004. He then moved to UTi Worldwide, where he worked as an import and export operations coordinator from 2005 to 2006. In 2006, he went back to Globalog S.A. and took on a wider role as an ocean import and export coordinator. He also gave advice on supply chain processes. He stayed in this position until mid-2007.
Transition to Manufacturing and Business Analysis
In 2010, Gutierrez moved into the manufacturing industry, working as a production manager at Lion Packaging until 2011. After that, he transitioned to business analysis and purchasing, joining Infosys Portland as a business analyst. Over time, he took on different roles, including purchasing specialist, supply chain and purchasing consultant, and later senior consultant. He stayed with the company until early 2016.
Supply Chain Leadership Roles
In 2016, Gutierrez stepped into a leadership role as a supply chain project lead at Ingham Enterprises, where he handled important projects for almost a year. In 2017, he worked as a supply chain and purchasing consultant for Caltex and later took on the role of logistics manager from January to May. Later that year, he joined The Happy Pear, a food company, where he is in charge of supply chain operations and worked with external manufacturers until late 2018.
Entry into Blockchain and Fintech
In 2019, Gutierrez entered the blockchain and fintech industry, becoming Chief Strategy Officer at ConsolFreight LLC, where he worked for two years. In 2020, he started the Forward Together Network, which focused on teamwork in decentralized finance. In early 2021, he co-founded Defactor, a platform that links traditional finance with decentralized finance. By August 2022, he became CEO of Defactor Labs, helping businesses get funding through digital assets.
Gutierrez’s Journey to Defactor
In an interview with Hesus Inoma, Gutierrez talked about his path from Colombia, where his family worked in supply chains, to earning a Master’s in Australia. After working in consulting, he saw how blockchain could fix supply chain problems and decided to dig deeper. In 2017, he moved to Ireland and co-founded Consol Freight to bring supply chains online. When the pandemic hit, the focus changed to liquidity, leading to Defactor, a project linking traditional and decentralized finance. They launched their ICO in 2021, learning from early DeFi leaders like MakerDAO.
Trade Finance Challenges and DeFi Solutions
In a 2022 Finastra livestream, Gutierrez, Miguel Torres, and Christophe Langlois discussed trade finance struggles, made worse by COVID-19. They noted a $1.5 trillion funding gap in 2020, which affected small businesses due to high costs and strict rules. They explored how automation, digitization, and DeFi could ease access to funding by cutting barriers and offering new solutions.
CEO of npayme Labs
Since January 2024, Gutierrez has been the CEO of npayme Labs, an important contributor to the npayme network. He works on building decentralized applications that help people earn and receive payments, making blockchain technology more useful. His leadership helps npayme grow in the Web3 space by creating new solutions for digital rewards and payments.
Expertise in Supply Chain and Procurement
Gutierrez has many years of experience in supply chain management, logistics, and procurement, working in different industries, from manufacturing to blockchain. At Infosys Portland, Ingham Enterprises, and Caltex, he learned how businesses run, how to make processes better, and how global logistics work. His work has helped companies improve operations and use new technology in supply chain systems.
Advocacy For Blockchain and DeFi
Gutierrez has been actively helping people understand decentralized finance (DeFi). Through Defactor Labs, he has worked to connect traditional financial systems with blockchain technology. His efforts have focused on giving businesses the tools they need to access funding by using digital assets.
Vision For The Future of Decentralization
As CEO of npayme Labs, Gutierrez is focused on creating new and better ways to use decentralized apps, especially for payments and rewards. He wants to make it easier for people and businesses to use blockchain technology, giving them more financial freedom and control over their digital assets. His goal is to build a system where individuals can earn, trade, and manage their money without relying on traditional financial institutions.
Final Thoughts
Gutierrez’s journey shows how he moved from supply chain and logistics to blockchain and decentralized finance. His experience in business analysis and finance helped him find ways to make funding easier using blockchain. Now, as CEO of npayme Labs, he focuses on building decentralized apps for payments and financial access. His work aims to connect traditional finance with DeFi, making blockchain tools more useful for everyone.
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