Fernando R. Carranza, JD, CPA
Attorney and Certified Public Accountant
Carranza Law Group, Inc., Chicago, Illinois
I advise businesses that move money online.
I’m a lawyer, a CPA and a former financial-crimes prosecutor. On any payment, I read the contract, the statute, the books and the fraud pattern.
Follow the payment
Money that moves online is governed by consumer-protection rules, bank rules, anti-money-laundering rules, and the contracts under all of them. I work across all four.
Choose a stop to see which rules apply there and what I do.
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A customer agrees to pay
Rules in play
- Electronic Funds Transfer Act (Regulation E)
- UDAAPUnfair, deceptive or abusive practices, including how the offer and terms are presented
- Fair Credit Reporting Act
- Truth in Lending (Regulation Z)
What I do
I advise on how these apply to the way you ask for consent and describe the charge.
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The business takes the order
Rules in play
- Software-as-a-service and licensing agreements
- GDPR and CCPA data termsData processing agreements, standard contractual clauses and data transfer agreements
- AI governanceFor AI tools used in checkout and risk screening
What I do
I draft and negotiate the agreements and data terms, and I advise on AI vendors and oversight.
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Someone checks who is paying
Rules in play
- Anti-money-laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) programs
- OFAC and excluded-parties screening
- FinCEN and FATF standards
- Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
What I do
I build and review these programs. Before private practice, I prosecuted financial crimes and governmental fraud for the Cook County State’s Attorney.
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The money settles
Rules in play
- Expedited Funds Availability Act (Regulation CC)
- Electronic funds transfer and settlement regulations
- FFIEC examination standards and Regulation S-PAlongside the NIST Cybersecurity Framework
- Digital-asset payment railsSEC and CFTC alignment
What I do
I have represented banks and other financial institutions on electronic funds transfers and settlement regulations, and I advise lenders and crypto-lending platforms.
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Something goes wrong
Rules in play
- Commercial litigation, arbitration and mediation
- SEC and PCAOB inquiries
- Internal investigations
- Cross-border disputesIncluding the Hague Evidence Convention
What I do
When there is a dispute, a fraud loss or a regulator’s letter, I advise and represent clients.
Who I advise: fintech and digital-asset companies, banks and other financial institutions, lenders, technology companies, private-equity firms and investors, and boards.
Selected work
Matters from my practice, described without client names. Largest first.
| Amount | Matter | Kind of work |
|---|---|---|
| Over $500M | Residential, commercial and construction closings, overseen as General Counsel and CFO of a Chicago title company. | Real estate closings |
| $400M | Title-consolidation credit facility for a Latin American shopping-centre developer. | Credit facility |
| $150M | Senior-notes secondary offering for a NYSE-listed generic pharmaceutical manufacturer. | Securities offering |
| $50M | Toll-road project finance in Peru: private placement of senior and mezzanine notes with political-risk insurance. | Project finance |
| $40M | NASDAQ small-cap IPO for a U.S. apparel company with a Mexican trademark, structured across borders to protect the IP. | Securities offering |
| $40M | Cross-border IPO of a spun-off subsidiary of an Australian insurer: S-1 registration and ADR structuring. | Securities offering |
| $25M | Accredited-investor offering for a crypto-lending platform building a banking service for the crypto market, with SEC and CFTC compliance. | Digital assets |
| $20M | Cross-border commercial litigation in Mexico for a Fortune 200 company, including the Hague Evidence Convention. | Disputes |
| No dollar amount | AML and anti-corruption compliance program for a multinational client, built to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. | Compliance |
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Both sides of the ledger
I practice law and I am a CPA. Payments work draws on both.
Law
- Lawyer, J.D.DePaul University College of Law, corporate law. Admitted in Illinois (1987), the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (1990) and the U.S. Tax Court (1994).
- Financial-crimes prosecutorAssistant state’s attorney with the Cook County State’s Attorney, 1988 to 1990, on financial crimes and governmental fraud.
Accounting
- CPA since 1983Certified Public Accountant, State of Illinois. B.S. in Accounting, University of Illinois, Gies College of Business.
- Big 4 audit and taxPricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young, 1983 to 1988: audit, tax and consulting, as a senior and a manager.
Languages
English. Spanish, full professional proficiency. Portuguese, conversational.
Memberships
Hispanic National Bar Association; International Bar Association; Illinois CPA Society and AICPA; Latin American Bar Association; Mexican American Lawyers Association (board); Illinois Hispanic Lawyers Association, including its Judicial Evaluation Committee; U.S.–Mexico Chamber of Commerce.
Full background
Career
- 2012–present
- Carranza Law Group, Inc. Founder. Capital markets, SEC compliance, AI governance, blockchain and digital-asset regulation, and cross-border structured finance.
- 2005–2011
- Executive Title, Inc. General Counsel and CFO of an independent title and closing company, with over $500M in residential, commercial and construction closings.
- 2000–2004
- Ross & Hardies. Corporate partner, international consulting.
- 1995–2000
- D’Ancona & Pflaum. Securities and M&A partner.
- 1990–1995
- Phelan, Pope & John. Senior associate, international business and commercial litigation.
- 1988–1990
- Cook County State’s Attorney. Assistant state’s attorney, financial crimes and governmental fraud.
- 1983–1988
- PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young. Audit, tax and consulting (senior and manager).
Education
- Stanford Graduate School of Engineering: AI Graduate Certificate, Product Innovation (2026)
- DePaul University College of Law: J.D., Corporate Law
- University of Illinois, Gies College of Business: B.S., Accounting
Teaching and service
- Associate professor of law, The John Marshall Law School (now UIC School of Law); legal-clinic volunteer
- Eagle Scout mentor, Boy Scouts of America
Publications
- “Across the Border: Foreign Investors Form Alliances In Mexico”The National Law Journal, 1998
- “International Litigation v. Alternative Dispute Resolution: Making the NAFTA Choice”Dispute Resolution Magazine, 1994
Tell me how your payments work.
A short call or email is enough to start. Say what you move, where it goes and what you need checked.
Chicago, Illinois