As 2020 comes into view, what can we expect to be at the top of regulators’ agendas? Key themes that are new from last year are ESG and an increased focus on operational resilience. Both EU and UK authorities are looking at how buy and sell-side firms should embed ESG considerations into their organisational and customer-facing processes. Whilst legal reforms are under discussion, we expect that institutional investors and market adaptations, such as the rise of green bonds, will continue to drive the debate, perhaps faster than the regulators and legislators can catch up. Much of the EU-level reform work being undertaken at present is dependent on the finalisation of an EU-wide ESG “taxonomy” (stemming from a proposed Taxonomy Regulation), which has proven to be particularly contentious, with the categorisation of “sustainable” activities a sticking point.
Philip Annett is a partner based in Baker McKenzie’s London office focussing on complex investigations, litigation and compliance matters. He has an in-depth knowledge of working with UK and international regulators and enforcement agencies, having previously been a senior lawyer in the Enforcement Division at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) where he led some of the regulator's highest-profile enforcement cases. He also previously worked in the Bribery and Corruption Division at the Serious Fraud Office.
Caitlin McErlane is a partner in Baker McKenzie’s Financial Services & Regulatory Group in the London office. Caitlin's practice focuses on advising a range of global financial institutions on complex and high value regulatory matters. She advises banks, major corporates, payment institutions and asset managers on navigating UK and EU financial services regulation. She has particular experience in advising clients on regulatory implementation projects, day-to-day compliance issues, and regulatory issues arising in the context of large-scale transactions. She also expertise in the areas of banking and wholesale financial markets regulation, in particular in the FX and fixed income space, alongside experience advising market infrastructure providers, including major international exchanges, trading platforms, clearing systems and payment services providers, on a variety of compliance issues. Caitlin is also a member of the Baker's ESG and sustainability taskforce, and advises a range of clients on the drafting and implementation of ESG policies and the implications of becoming a signatory to the UNPRI and the Stewardship Code. Caitlin is an authority on regulatory reforms in the sustainability space and sits on a number of trade association working groups. She has recently been interviewed by Climate Action on her work and is a frequent speaker on the subject.
Richard Powell is Lead Knowledge Lawyer for Baker McKenzie's Financial Institutions Industry Group where he is responsible for legal content projects, training and knowledge initiatives. Previously he was a member of the UK Financial Conduct Authority's Enforcement Division where he advised on regulatory cases. He has also been an editor of Bloomberg Law's UK Financial Services Law Journal.
Julian is a senior associate in Baker McKenzie's Financial Services Group in London. Julian advises financial institutions including international and local fintechs, investment and retail banks, asset managers, investment advisers, payment services firms and product issuers on compliance with UK and European regulatory obligations. Julian also has experience in advising on the spectrum of regulated financial services and products including deposit products, payment accounts and electronic money products, consumer credit, insurance, derivatives, managed funds, structured debt and equities. Julian has completed a secondment to UBS AG and Western Union Business Solutions, in their in-house legal and compliance teams. Duties included advising equity derivatives, fixed income derivatives and equities teams on general commercial and regulatory issues. He is currently on secondment from the Australian offices of the Firm and has extensive experience with both Australian and English financial regulation.
Shaneil Shah is an associate in the Financial Services & Regulatory Group in the London office. Shaneil has experience advising fintechs, funds, banks, asset managers and payment institutions on compliance with their regulatory obligations. He also advises on contentious matters, including investigations and enforcement proceedings brought by financial regulators, internal regulatory investigations and financial services disputes. Shaneil recently spent time on secondment to the London branch of a global investment bank and to Baker McKenzie in Hong Kong.
David Halliday is a partner in the IT/Communications Practice Group in Baker McKenzie's London office. His practice spans a broad range of contentious and non-contentious work in the IT/telecoms area, with particular focus on dispute resolution.
Sue is a partner in Baker McKenzie's IP, Data and Technology team based in London. Sue specialises in major technology deals including cloud, outsourcing, digital transformation and development and licensing. She also advises on a range of legal and regulatory issues relating to the development and roll-out of new technologies including AI, blockchain/DLT, metaverse and crypto-assets. Her IP and commercial experience includes drafting, advising on and negotiating a wide range of intellectual property and commercial agreements including IP licences and assignment agreements, long-term supply and distribution agreements. She also assists clients in preparing terms of business and related documentation for new business processes and offerings and coordinating global roll-outs. Sue is also a key member of our transactional practice, providing strategic support on the commercial, technology and intellectual property aspects of M&A transactions and joint ventures, including advising on transitional services agreements and other key ancillary IP and commercial agreements. Sue is ranked as a leading lawyer in Chambers for Information Technology & Outsourcing and Fintech Legal and in Legal500 for Commercial Contracts, IT & Telecoms, TMT and Fintech. Clients say of Sue "Sue is outstanding", "She is a really good and very committed lawyer", "Excellent…. Very capable, wouldn’t hesitate to use on IT/TMT/Outsourcing matters." Sue was named in the Standout 35 of the Women in FinTech Powerlist 2020.
Steve Holmes leads Baker McKenzie's Technology & Communications practice in London. Steve is rated by the UK legal directories as a leading lawyer in the outsourcing, telecoms and technology categories, which state: "He is very commercial and experienced . . . He is definitely someone you want on your side in a tough negotiation" (Chambers UK, 2020, Telecoms). “Steve is a superstar. He builds rapport like no one I've ever seen and gets deals done efficiently and with finesse." "He's one of the top lawyers in the outsourcing market" (Chambers UK, 2020, Outsourcing). "Very strong." "Excellent academically and commercially" (Chambers UK, 2020, Information Technology). “Steve Holmes brings a combination of expert and commercially relevant analysis that is very much appreciated” (Legal 500, 2020, IT and Telecoms). Clients commend his "wealth of experience in the IT world and for his understanding of where the market is and where the technology is developing," and comment that “his customer service is great and he challenges us to think creatively" (Chambers UK, 2019, Information Technology).
Matthew Dening is the Chair of the Firm's Global Derivatives Practice and a member of the Firm’s Structured Capital Markets Group in the London office. He focuses his practice primarily on cross-border structured finance transactions involving derivatives, repos and securities lending, as well as the regulation of financial products under the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR), MiFID II and the Securities Financing Transactions Regulation (SFTR). Matthew has received acknowledgement from numerous legal industry guides. He has been ranked as a leading expert by Chambers & Partners since 2005, and is currently ranked Band 1 in Structured Finance & Derivatives in the most recent Global edition. They highlight that he "understands complex problems very well, and is able to think about business issues in conjunction with legal requirements," as well as being "incredibly responsive and client-friendly." He regularly acts for buy-side derivatives firms. The UK Legal 500 note him as "a true expert in this area of law, a pleasant person who can explain very difficult matters clearly." Matthew is a member of the Editorial Board of Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Finance Law. He is a frequent speaker and guest panellist at conferences in both the derivative and structured product area, as well as law firm management. He was recently a guest panellist at Thomson Reuters Transforming Women’s Leadership in the Law in 2019.
