Fintech

Skadden’s integrated practices and global platform position the firm well to provide the strategic legal solutions necessary for fintech clients to keep up with constantly evolving platforms, technologies and services in this space. Our practice — which was top ranked in several categories of Chambers FinTech 2023, named the 2021 Fintech Law Firm of the Year (Large Cap), recognized for the 2021 Financial Technology Deal of the Year (Large Cap) by The Deal and selected as one of Law360’s Fintech Groups of the Year for 2020 — draws on our market-leading capabilities in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, financial regulation and enforcement, and intellectual property and technology.

Few law firms can match our depth and breadth of experience advising businesses across the spectrum of the fintech industry:

  • IP and Technology. We counsel on intellectual property issues that are uniquely implicated in financial technology transactions and companies. Our attorneys provide the full range of legal services relating to the acquisition, enforcement and commercialization of IP assets. We frequently advise fintech clients on outsourcing transactions and technology and IP licensing matters.
  • Corporate Transactions. Skadden represents fintech clients in complex corporate transactions, and we resolve some of the most difficult exit-related structuring issues.
  • Financial Regulation. The firm advises on regulatory, compliance and enforcement issues that fintech companies must address when engaging in financial transactions. The myriad regulatory issues that companies face may involve specific state and federal regulations governing banking and trust operations and relationships, anti-money laundering and foreign asset controls, holding companies, trading and market regulation, taxation and consumer protections.
  • Finance. We advise on the full spectrum of financing transactions and complex financial products, from traditional equity and debt capital markets transactions to derivatives and structured finance matters. Our group provides guidance on all phases of the investment life cycle, from pre-IPO financings to virtually any type of venture capital, IPO, M&A or other liquidity strategies. We also negotiate all critical provisions related to financing documentation, including those related to governance, registration rights and other areas and ensuring that no provision attracts unnecessary regulatory scrutiny.
  • Other Areas. We provide integrated advice in many areas relevant to the functioning of global fintech businesses, including litigation, tax, executive compensation and benefits, labor and employment, real estate and antitrust.

We serve both established and emerging participants in this space, providing transactional, regulatory and strategic advice to private equity and venture capital firms, asset managers and funds, broker-dealers, banking institutions, start-up companies, lending platforms, payment companies, trading systems, technology companies, financial services providers, virtual currency companies, and card issuers and networks. Some of our most significant matters include advising:

  • a major global payments company in a multijurisdictional internal investigation, voluntary disclosure and settlement with OFAC regarding the company’s compliance with U.S. economic sanctions laws involving Iran and other countries;
  • American Express on permissibility and other bank regulatory questions relating to an agreement with Lianlian Group to introduce AMEX’s digital payments platform — Serve — throughout China;
  • CashCall, Inc. in a CFPD enforcement action (C.D. Cal.) involving allegations of UDAAP violations, multiple state attorney general enforcement actions and consumer class actions;
  • The Diem Association on a variety of technology, privacy, corporate, regulatory and tax matters in connection with the development of a cryptocurrency based on the Libra Blockchain;
  • QIWI plc in its acquisition of the Contact money transfer system and the Rapida payment processing system from Otkritie Holding JSC; and Yirendai Ltd. in its $75 million IPO and listing on the New York Stock Exchange;
  • Vantiv, Inc. in its $10 billion acquisition of Worldpay Group plc.; and
  • Visa Inc. in drafting and revising online license agreements.