Eugene Saint-Gregoire: starting a law firm on day one after a prestigious academic path

In this episode of the "Le Cheat Code" podcast I had the pleasure of interviewing Eugene Saint-Gregoire, a lawyer specialising in fundraising and sales for tech and AI companies in France and in Africa. Born in Bangui and raised between the Central African Republic and Montpellier, Eugene gives us a fascinating look at a singular path and some bold professional choices.

A professional with a cause...

Eugene, a French and Togolese national, chose to focus on mergers and acquisitions and corporate financing, with a particular interest in African and French startups. His commitment to those sectors goes well beyond providing legal services. Eugene is deeply involved in the economic development of both continents, actively supporting innovative businesses in their search for funding.

... specialising in fundraising and cross-border sales for tech companies

Committed to French-African investment, notably in Togo and Benin, Eugene explains how he balances his consulting work with his role as a lawyer. He sets out the challenges and the opportunities of working across two continents.

An exemplary academic path, and starting your own practice

Eugene Saint-Gregoire's academic path is impressive and speaks to his determination to succeed in law and finance. He studied and cut his teeth in prestigious institutions and firms (take a look at his LinkedIn profile, it is worth the detour). That high-level academic training, built around finance and law, gave him the skills to navigate mergers, acquisitions and corporate financing effectively. That solid grounding gave him the tools to excel in his work and to give his clients first-rate legal advice. Everyone expected him to join one of the prestigious firms, but Eugene made the bold decision to start his own practice straight away. He explains that the choice was deliberate, and how he organised his work to succeed in a competitive field. He shares the tools and software he uses to work more efficiently, notably Airtable and Make, and gives valuable advice to lawyers who want to follow the same path.

‍

Give to receive: Zema Ventures

Eugene has also built an innovative platform called Zema Ventures. The free platform helps you find tech investors, buyers of tech companies and business angel clubs (in short, it helps his clients with their fundraising). He explains how and why he built Zema Ventures, and we look at why it is both generous and extremely smart.

Listen to the episode

This episode is a mine of information for lawyers and legal entrepreneurs who want to innovate and grow their business. Eugene Saint-Gregoire embodies a new generation of lawyers, ready to use modern tools and novel approaches to drive their own growth and their clients'. His Zema Ventures platform and his use of software such as Make and Airtable speak to his commitment to bringing technology into legal practice, and open the way to a new era of legal entrepreneurship.

‍