Team size: 82

What are the most significant cases and/or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

The legal operations team is at the heart of Worldline’s business, delivering legal advice and negotiating every contract that impacts the Group. From the most routine day-to-day activities to the most strategic deals, we strive to support our colleagues.

We are also involved in all the transformation projects, whether they relate to the evolution of the Group and its ability to deliver new services and products to our customers or to the many mergers and acquisitions that have shaped the Worldline Group over the years, such as the acquisition of Ingenico, the divestment of the payment terminal hardware business, or the many acquisitions and partnerships that have extended the Group’s geographical footprint.

Looking forward, what technological advancements do you feel will impact the role of in-house legal teams in the future the most? Which have you found most useful in your legal team?

Generative AI is definitely a game-changer. Not only will this technology change the way we work, but it will also help legal counsel better manage the time constraints we all deal with. Generative AI is like providing every legal adviser with a personal assistant to help them work more efficiently in their daily work.

What are some of the main trends in the industry sector you work in in France?

The payments industry is facing a number of challenges directly linked to increased regulation, changes in usage, and the impact of new technologies that are creating new needs. Europe represents a highly fragmented legal landscape that has to manage many local specificities. This is unlike the US, which has already created its own path to unify its payments landscape and has a highly regulated ecosystem aimed at protecting consumers. This could lead to delays in the adoption of new technologies compared to other regions of the world. In this complex ecosystem, Worldline is paving its own way to develop scale benefits while adopting the best of new technologies. For legal teams, it is a chance to evolve in such a dynamic sector at the cross-border of many domains.

How do you suggest in-house lawyers build strong relationships with business partners?

An in-house lawyer must build a relationship of trust with his or her business partners and not limit themselves to their basic legal expertise. To achieve this, they need to understand and integrate the points of view of all stakeholders and actively participate in the negotiation strategy. Acting less like a legal expert and more like a business team member is the best way to create a path to success for the business.