Latham & Watkins advises the businesses and institutions that power the global economy. We bring together the world’s best legal talent in every major jurisdiction to shape the deals and win the disputes that transform markets. Our experience at the cutting edge of commercial, financial, and legal innovation enables us to deliver results that fuel our clients’ success.
Latham’s multidisciplinary fintech team helps clients around the globe, from fintech startups to major financial institutions, navigate a fast-evolving legal and regulatory landscape. We draw on vast experience across financial regulatory, corporate, litigation, and tech capabilities to help fintech-focused clients innovate, invest, and thrive.
Asia
Simon Hawkins leads Latham & Watkins’ financial regulatory practice in Asia and co-chairs the firm’s Digital Assets & Web3 Practice. An experienced and trusted advisor to financial institutions and fintech companies, Simon advises a full range of financial industry and fintech clients — from traditional commercial and investment banks, private equity firms, broker/dealers, and insurers to innovative fintech companies, including payments companies, crypto exchanges and custodians, token issuers, and Metaverse and decentralized finance (DeFi) projects.
Farhana Sharmeen, head of the firm’s Singapore law practice, advises clients globally on complex cross-border transactions with a Singapore nexus. Farhana combines over 20 years of extensive cross-discipline expertise and a sophisticated understanding of Singapore’s regulatory landscape to guide financial institutions and companies on corporate and finance transactions, compliance, and governance matters.
Europe
Stuart Davis, Co-Chair of the Fintech Industry Group, counsels clients on the UK and cross-border regulatory aspects of cutting-edge fintech initiatives, including technology innovations in legislation, market infrastructure, tokenization, trading, clearing and settlement, lending (including crowdfunding), payments, and regulatory surveillance.
Markus Krüger advises a broad spectrum of German and international clients on complex mergers and acquisitions, with a particular focus on private equity transactions and transactions involving fintech and the financial industry. Markus also frequently represents clients in corporate restructurings and general corporate law matters and has significant expertise with bank regulatory and restructuring matters.
Gabriel Lakeman, Co-Chair of Latham’s Global Digital Assets & Web3 Practice, advises clients at the intersection of financial services, technology, and regulation. Gabriel draws on a deep understanding of the financial regulatory landscape to advise C-suite executives, senior leadership, and founders across the fintech ecosystem on: super-apps and innovative securities platforms, including MiFID II and AIFMD; digital assets and Web3, including cryptoasset registration, VASP regimes, and MiCA; payment services and systems, including PSD2/3; and financial services and Big Data, Big Tech, and AI. Gabriel collaborates with leading global financial services firms to develop new products and platforms, focusing on creating solutions to help clients structure their businesses and develop new services that comply with rapidly evolving global requirements. His clients include broker-dealers, investment and retail banks, technology startups, central banks, market infrastructure providers, investment managers, hedge funds, and private equity funds.
Fiona Maclean, Vice Chair of the firm’s Technology Industry Group, advises clients on data privacy compliance and IT and business processing transactions, with a focus on cloud computing and data strategy. She brings a unique cross-section of knowledge and experience spanning data, technology, and commercial contracts to help clients navigate complex, multijurisdictional transactions within the broader framework of data privacy laws. Her work at the nexus of the commercial and data worlds includes advising on operational resiliency risks and regulatory requirements, including some of the global market’s most transformational cloud deals.
Christian McDermott, Co-Chair of Latham’s Payments Practice, and an experienced technology lawyer, advises clients on large-scale technology contracts, commercial collaborations, and fintech and payments transactions. Christian guides global and UK-based financial institutions — as well as publicly listed, private, and emerging companies — on technology development, use, and commercialization.
Middle East
Brian Meenagh advises clients in matters involving complex technology transactions, projects, and joint ventures; procurement and sourcing, including outsourcing and offshoring; data privacy and cybersecurity compliance; and fintech and blockchain technology. He primarily represents customers procuring technology and services in such transactions and has significant experience advising against major technology and software vendors active in the Middle East. Before training as a solicitor, Brian was a business and IT analyst at Accenture, where he worked on outsourcing, business transformation, systems integration, and software development projects for blue chip companies and UK central government.
US
Jenny E. Cieplak advises financial services clients on a range of corporate, intellectual property, and regulatory issues arising in fintech and other technology transactions. Jenny provides broad-based corporate counsel to financial institutions, investors, startups, and newly created consortiums. She advises clients on collaborative arrangements between users and creators of market infrastructure initiatives designed to transform sectors of the financial industry, including joint development, investment, and governance agreements. She leverages insights into the technology development process, financial industry users’ needs, and the legal issues surrounding new technologies’ creation to provide clients with a unique skill set and perspective.
Zachary Fallon, Co-Chair of Latham’s Global Digital Assets & Web3 Practice, represents clients navigating the intersection of federal securities laws and innovative financial technologies. Zachary is a former Senior Special Counsel at the US Securities and Exchange Commission, and draws on extensive practical legal and regulatory experience to guide companies, investors, intermediaries, and other market participants on securities law compliance obligations and strategic considerations, cryptocurrency-related matters, financings, including smaller public offerings (e.g., Regulation A) and private venture capital and angel rounds, securities law defense in SEC and state agency investigations, emerging company issues and general corporate matters.
Arthur S. Long advises clients on all aspects of financial institutions regulation. Arthur draws on extensive industry knowledge to help non-US and US financial institutions navigate the regulatory aspects of M&A and capital markets transactions, bank regulatory compliance issues, Dodd-Frank issues, resolution planning, and Volcker Rule issues with respect to bank proprietary trading and private equity fund/hedge fund operations. He also counsels fintech companies on the regulatory issues that relate to their businesses, as well as advises on virtual currency and blockchain technology regulation.
Parag Patel advises financial services companies, financial institutions, and fintechs on transactional and regulatory matters, with a particular focus on emerging payments, innovative technology, consumer and small-business lending, and banking. Parag guides banks, non-bank lenders, payments and technology companies, and their vendors on regulatory compliance, supervision, money transmission, lending, anti-fraud and anti-money laundering, and transactional matters.
Yvette Valdez, Co-Chair of Latham & Watkins’ Commodities and Derivatives Regulation and Enforcement Practice, head of the US Derivatives Regulatory Practice, and Co-Chair of the Global Digital Assets & Web3 Practice, advises emerging companies, financial institutions, and investment managers on complex regulatory challenges in developing bespoke financial crypto-asset and cryptocurrency technologies. Yvette’s experience spans token sales, market infrastructure, trading, clearing, and settlement solutions on distributed ledger technology. She also guides clients on US and cross-border cutting-edge fintech initiatives in the derivatives markets.
Barrie VanBrackle, Co-Chair of Latham’s Payments Practice, advises industry leaders on complex fintech transactions, specifically involving payment technology and consumer financial services compliance. She regularly guides clients on transactions involving payment systems participants — including large merchants, payment processors, and financial technology vendors — with respect to payment acceptance, payment issuance, co-brand agreements, payment card industry data security issues, and payment regulatory matters.
Stephen Wink, Global Co-Chair of Latham & Watkins’ Fintech Industry Group, advises a wide range of market players — including investment banks, hedge funds, private equity firms, exchanges, alternative trading platforms, transfer agents, other financial institutions, and fintechs — on matters involving the regulation of broker-dealers and investment advisors, market regulation, and compliance and enforcement matters.
Douglas Yatter, Global Vice Chair of Latham’s White Collar Defense & Investigations Practice, Co-Chair of the Commodities and Derivatives Regulation and Enforcement Practice, and a founding member of the Global Digital Assets & Web3 Practice, represents cryptocurrency clients in their most significant litigation, regulatory, and enforcement matters. Douglas also helps large financial institutions, fintech ventures, and other clients navigate a complex and rapidly developing regulatory and enforcement environment.