Pooling together resources from across many different practice groups, the 'highly knowledgeable, skilled and solutions driven' multi-disciplinary team at Clifford Chance remains at the vanguard of the market, regularly handling  transformational fintech projects across key areas such as blockchain, smart contracts, digital assets, payments, AI, data, fund tech, cyber and insurtech. As well as generating significant market intel from fee-earning work, the team's involvement for trade and industry bodies has also ensured they are at the cutting-edge of material new ideas that are shaping the ever-evolving fintech landscape. For example, team head Steve Jacoby is one of many in the office who works closely with LHoFT, Luxembourg’s dedicated Fintech centre which seeks to foster innovation in the sector. On the fee-earning front, Jacoby is particularly skilled at advising on work at the intersection of digital finance and capital markets, acting for issuers of digital bonds as well as for market infrastructure providers. The firm’s multi-disciplinary approach also leads to a significant amount of funds and corporate-related fintech work, including in the context of M&A and JVs in the space, with senior partner Christian Kremer regularly handling work for both start-ups and established entities on workflow in the space.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘It is a highly knowledgeable, skilled and solutions driven team.'
  • ‘Steve Jacoby and Christian Kremer are two of the best lawyers I have worked with. Highly knowledgeable, very amenable and accessible, broad skill set and innovative.’

Key clients

  • HQLAx S.à r.l.
  • European Investment Bank
  • AlterDomus
  • CPPIB Credit Investments Inc.

Work highlights

  • Continues to advise HQLAX and Deutsche Börse on their jointly developed distributed ledger technology (DLT) solution for frictionless collateral swaps in the securities lending market, enabling market participants to transfer ownership of securities seamlessly across disparate collateral pools at precise moments in time.
  • Advised the existing Alter Domus shareholders, a global provider of tech-enabled fund administration, private debt, and corporate services, including the Founders and Permira, on their new strategic partnership with Cinven.
  • Advised a Fintech startup on the setting up of an investment firm as well as DLT issuance, multilateral trading and settlement services platform under EU Pilot Regime.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Steve Jacoby

Other key lawyers

Christian Kremer, Katia Gauzès, Albert Moro, Oliver Zwick, Udo Prinz, Boika Deleva, Louis Mamère, Charles Henri Laevens