Fintech
Helping high-growth fintechs, established financial institutions and related service providers to develop and implement transformative technologies.
New technologies continue to drive innovation and change across the financial services sector. Navigating this changing landscape requires a deep understanding of the market, and of the commercial, legal and regulatory considerations that underpin it.
We help disruptive growth-stage firms, established financial institutions and technology service providers to develop and implement transformative technologies, products and business models, and to manage the careful balance between innovation and legal and regulatory risk.
Slaughter and May’s fintech group leverages its market leading expertise in technology and data, and the banking, payments, asset management, investment and insurance sectors to deliver pragmatic, considered advice that helps our clients achieve their commercial objectives. As a leading international law firm, we can draw on our corporate, financing, competition, regulatory and disputes and investigations experts to provide a holistic view of our clients’ legal and regulatory issues.
We frequently advise clients on:
- Equity and debt funding, from seed stage to exit, and covering both fintechs and investors
- The legal and regulatory considerations relevant to new technologies, including generative AI, digital assets, and products leveraging open finance
- The development and deployment of new products and services, from legal and technological architecture to customer terms
- Significant IT and data transformation projects
- Regulatory authorisation and approval processes, and firms’ ongoing prudential and conduct requirements under the regulatory system
- Complex domestic and cross-border M&A
- Regulatory investigations and commercial disputes, including in relation to novel technologies and asset classes (including digital assets).
Key experience
We have advised Monzo since it was founded in 2015. We most recently supported its Series I fundraising, which was led by CapitalG, Alphabet’s independent growth fund, and valued Monzo at c. £4 billion.
We advised SC Ventures, the ventures unit of the Standard Chartered group, on its partnership with Northern Trust to launch Zodia Custody, an institutional-grade custody solution for cryptocurrencies, and Zodia Markets, an institutional trading platform for cryptocurrencies.
We advised SoftBank Vision Fund as the lead investor in Revolut’s USD800 million Series E fundraising round, valuing Revolut at approximately USD33 billion, making it the most valuable fintech company in the UK at the time.
We advised the financial intelligence platform in relation to the structure of, and the preparation of initial terms and conditions for, the launch of Y-TREE’s innovative app-based investment dashboard and “whole portfolio” approach to investment management for their clients. We also advised on subsequent changes to those terms and conditions and well as various IP and Data related matters as their business has grown and developed.
We advised one of the world’s highest valued fintech companies on its first move into Europe with its acquisition of Noddle, an online consumer credit scoring service.
We supported UK open banking payments unicorn TrueLayer on its authorisation by the FCA, legal and regulatory questions relevant to the development of its core product offering and its expansion outside the UK. We also advised on TrueLayer’s Series C fundraising round and the internal reorganisation that preceded it.
We advised a crypto dApp developer, which provides a protocol to facilitate lending of crypto currencies, on a dispute related to equity alleged to have been promised to certain employees. The dispute involves understanding the complex package of incentives offered to early employees, including crypto derivatives.
Key Contacts
