Amsterdam has seen a flurry of activity over the last few months, with various financial institutions choosing to shift their bases over to the Netherlands rather than the anticipated districts, such as Frankfurt and Dublin. Last month it was announced that two leading FX traders, MarketAxess and Tradeweb, will be setting up in Amsterdam, whilst NatWest Markets Division and Japan’s largest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group are also planning to house their investment operations there.

Here we have taken a look at some of the reasons why this trend is beginning to emerge and what makes Amsterdam such an attractive option.

Regulation

For traders, Amsterdam poses a viable option for a European hub. The experience built up by the Netherlands Authority for Financial Markets (AFM) offers a regulatory incentive for trading firms as the Dutch licence is essentially tailor-made for markets activity.

Due to the lengthy history of trading in the Dutch financial district as well as its openness towards derivatives, the AFM expresses a more liberal outlook on these products compared to other regulators.

A major incentive specifically for proprietary trading firms is the rare ability to trade directly with big pension funds and insurance companies without considering them clients, something which massively reduces their legal and regulatory burden and is uncommon in other EU locations.

High frequency trading

It can’t be denied that Amsterdam presents essential benefits for high frequency traders. The city operates on some the world’s fastest data links, a fundamental aspect to the operation of HFTs.

Good data connectivity will further benefit businesses in the foreign exchange industry, for whom speed is also vital. However, due to the existing high-speed sub-Atlantic cables between London and New York, primary bases for these institutions may well remain in London.

After the financial crisis in 2008, Amsterdam suffered a blow to its financial services economy, leading to cap on bonuses for individuals working in this sector. For prop traders however, they remain unaffected by the bonus cap as they don’t use depositors’ money and therefore wouldn’t ever require a taxpayer bailout. Although this barrier would deter the larger banks from settling in the city, traders can enjoy the logistical and regulatory benefits without the financial downfall.

It’s no surprise given Amsterdam’s setup as the ideal hub for high frequency trading, but the Dutch have also fostered a burgeoning fintech movement across all areas of banking and finance, which is driven by their appetite for lean efficiencies and advancements in technology. The AFM is one of the most forward-thinking regulators in catering for innovation in financial markets and those choosing the Dutch city as its new base will likely benefit from this when it comes to staying ahead of the curve and integrating fintech as part of its offering.

Overall, there is a clear incentive for traders to move to the Netherlands, however, due to disproportion in advantages for traders compared to major banks, it could bring about a fragmentation of the financial services sector. As the trading community mulls over a move to the Netherlands; retail banks consider a shift to Dublin; many firms likely to remain in London, and various larger players moving to Frankfurt – it looks like everyone could win a piece of the pie.

If you would like to talk further about opportunities in the Dutch market, please get in touch with Directors Tom Spence (tspence@fidessearch.com / 0203 642 1871) and Phil Burdon(pburdon@fidessearch.com / 0203 642 1873) who lead our Amsterdam offering and have an extensive network in the local market which they have built over a number of years working in the region

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn for more regular market updates.

This week:

The City hits “crunch time” for Brexit transition

Prime Minister Theresa May received a warning yesterday from a City lobby group which claimed that it is “crunch time” for a Brexit deal for UK finance firms.

On Thursday, the day before May is set to deliver a Brexit speech to EU leaders in Florence, lobby group TheCityUK issued a stark warning on the lack of a transitional deal for the financial services industry, which has already led to a number of firms moving their operations out of the UK. “When they’ve gone, it’s hard to see them coming back”, says Miles Celic, CEO of TheCityUK.

“We need the UK and the EU27 to agree a time-limited and legally-binding transition period that resembles the status quo as closely as possible.”

It is expected that decisions of where to be headquartered will be made by financial institutions by the end of year, which makes it crucial that a transitional deal, allowing firms to continue to operate within EU jurisdictions from the UK, is struck by this point at the latest. However various major banks, insurers and fund managers have already kicked off in implementing contingency plans. This week, Lloyds of London owners XL Group announced it will be shifting its headquarters to Dublin in 2018 pending regulatory approval, whilst Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of America, Barclays and Morgan Stanley have all selected their new European bases.

One subsector within the FS industry to have notably kickstarted the outflow from London is foreign exchange traders. Earlier this month we took a look into why global traders have started to shift their bases over to Amsterdam in particular, which you can read here.

Meanwhile, the industry is also awaiting a vital report from the International Regulatory Strategy Group (IRSG) which will lay out the most ideal trade pact to come out of Brexit negotiations that mutually benefits both UK and EU firms. The paper is due to be published in Brussels next Tuesday.

Without transitional arrangements being made, and given the possibility of faltering Brexit talks, businesses will have no other option but to prepare for a hard Brexit, an action which would impose an irreversible hit to the UK’s financial hub.

In today’s speech, the PM is expected to offer to continue UK funding to the EU budget until the end of 2020, over a year after Britain completes its exit in March 2019. In return, she requests a time-limited transition period, to preserve access to the single market until 2021.

Movers & Shakers of the week

Appointments

Pinsents appoints new chairman

Richard Masters has been named the next chairman of Scotland and Northern Ireland for Pinsent Masons

Virgin names new head of Legal

Virgin Enterprises has appointed IP lawyer Bill Budd as its new head of legal and IP, following the departure of Charlie Everitt to Reckitt Benckiser

Moves

CLO of Innovation Group departs

James Liddard has left his position as chief legal officer of The Innovation Group to join Colt Group

HSF makes push in China infrastructure

Herbert Smith Freehills has hired three projects partners from Pinsent Masons to boost its Asia practice. Hew Kian Heong, Ellen Zhang and Michelle Li will sit in the firms Mainland China team.

CMS hires 12-strong real estate team in Paris

CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre has taken on Herbert Smith Freehills’ Paris real estate team, including practice head Pierre Popesco and partner Florence Cherel. Real estate partner David Lacaze will remain at HSF and take on the role of head of real estate at the firm.

Pinsents loses two partners in Manchester

Real estate partners Mike Edge and Rachel Pitman have joined Mills & Reeve in Manchester from Pinsent Masons.

Latham strengthens London finance practice

Finance partner Simeon Rudin is joining Latham & Watkins’ London office from magic circle firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Office Openings

PwC prepares to launch a law firm in US, with its office to be based in Washington DC

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1).  The Collapse of Northern Rock: Ten years on

This week marked the ten year anniversary of the collapse of Northern Rock. Following the announcement of Bank of England intervention, leading to the first run on a British bank in 150 years, it was a sign of things to come and the start of a crisis the country is still recovering from.

Despite an estimated 1.2 trillion pounds being pledged to support the financial system, and the UK’s biggest banks slashing $3.6 trillion of assets, profitability remains low.

Of the large retail banks that survived the crisis, Barclays and RBS remain smaller than they were a decade ago, with the latter still being 71% state owned. All of the ‘big four’ are less profitable, as they comply with capital requirements alongside the payment of record-breaking regulatory fines. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, the average return on equity has plunged from 18.4 percent in 2007 to 4.5 percent today, way below the 10 percent ‘cost pf equity’ investors typically demand.

And the markets are yet to fully recover either. UK M&A volumes have also fallen drastically since 2007 when levels reached nearly $650bn, data from Thomson Reuters shows. So far this year UK M&A volumes have reached just $258bn – failing to break the $2bn mark last year – due to Brexit’s destabilising effect on the market.

As such, analysis this week in the press has been directed at the extent to which UK banking practices have changed, and the susceptibility of the sector should it face another crisis.

Although great progress has been made to curb irresponsible lending and rebuild banks capital buffers, concerns have been made about a return to more risker consumer lending practices, such as long interest-free periods on balance-transfer credit cards. Unsecured consumer credit has risen since 2010, with rates of growth returning to pre-crisis levels of about 10 per cent. Borrowing rose above £200bn in July for the first time since 2008, in a sign that banks are pushing more aggressively into unsecured lending to boost profits.

As the UK’s biggest banks struggle to grow and recover, one hopes that financial lessons of the past have been learnt one way or another.

2). International Growth: A&O’s Blueprint

The internationalisation of law firms is a given in today’s climate with firm’s taking different approaches to expansion. Each firm approaches this in their own way which will fit with their ambitions and the agreed outlook of their partnership. Some opting for the scale model and a ‘bigger is better’ approach through multiple mergers whilst others are implementing a more piecemeal strategy to develop their business in a more organic way. Today we look at the Magic Circle and Allen & Overy in particular as they look to maintain their place at the top table in the global legal marketplace.

In their recent interview with The Lawyer Andrew Ballheimer and Wim Dejonghe discussed the expansion the firm has gone through in recent years, opening 14 offices since 2010 evidencing their focus on the execution of their global strategy. Whilst their Magic Circle peers have seemingly struggled with finding the right balance between international growth or retrenchment, Allen & Overy have continued a smooth upward trajectory in their financial performance.

The firm seems to be realising a balance between international growth, strength in London and global integration and is clearly benefiting from it. With historically UK focused firms, the challenge has been diversifying revenue generation away from London to remove a hub and spoke model that can lead to integration and cross selling issues. If not managed well this process can also result in public tensions within the partnehsips and mass departures within international offices. Allen & Overy’s ability tospread income across the network is shown by the statistic that ‘just 38% of the firm’s total fee income was generated from its London office last year’ whilst their ability to integrate their practices and clients internationally is nicely evidenced by 74% of the firm’s revenue coming ‘ from matters involving two or more countries.  Also an impressive  ‘30% of turnover is derived from work involving five or more countries.’

Whilst these statistics cannot yet be assessed against competitors or other global firms, they do show a firm growing internationally and succeeding in cross-fertilising their clients and revenue to enhance integration which can only be praised in such a competitive and challenging industry. How Allen & Overy continues to develop their business will be seen in the coming years. What we can expect however, is that they will do so in a considered and strategic manner with a focus on maintaining and improving their services to clients globally through an integrated and cohesive business.

All firms have their own philosophy towards growth and the implementation of it, Allen & Overy simply provide an example that through their performance and numbers, seems to be working.

3). Movers & Shakers

Panel Watch

Eversheds wins sole adviser appointment for Turkish Airlines

Lloyds banking group kicks off review of customer pay panel

Unilever delays panel review until 2018

Appointments

AB InBev GC steps down following SABMiller mega merger

Uber UK legal boss takes on EMEA role

Burford Capital hires former UBS in-house lawyer as GC

Partner Moves

White & Case hires two Private Equity Partners in Stockholm

Jan Jensen and Shoan Panahi join White & Case from Nordic firm Hannes Snellman.

Berwin Leighton Paisner seals triple disputes hire including Freshfields veteran

BLP has strengthened its City practice with the hire of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s former Asia disputes head, Richard Chalk, and Vinson & Elkins arbitration partner George Burn. Meanwhile, Herbert Smith Freehills’ Thailand head of dispute resolution Gavin Margetson has joined the firms’ Singapore office.

Bird & Bird builds equity capital markets practice with Charles Russell Speechlys hires

Partners Clive Hopewell and Adam Carling have joined the team

Office openings & Closings

Gide launches Iran offering through Gibson Dunn hire

Mergers and Alliances

CMS boosts Middle East presence via exclusive Saudi association with former Trowers alliance firm

Pinsent Masons calls time on six-year alliance with Chinese construction firm

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1. Demands grow for full report into RBS misconduct allegations

The Treasury Select Committee is urging the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to publish a leaked report indicating serious poor treatment of clients by the Royal Bank of Scotland.

Findings from a report commissioned by the FCA linked to an ongoing investigation into RBS’ Global Restructuring Group (GRG) have been leaked to the BBC. They show that 92 per cent of GRG’s business customers experienced “inappropriate action” and only 10 per cent of struggling companies managed to emerge from the group.

The state-owned bank’s now defunct Global Restructuring Group ran from 2005 to 2013 with the purpose of helping recover troubled small businesses. However, details from the report carried out by Promontory Financial Group have been reported to suggest that there was evidence of systemically poor treatment of small business customers, and led to speculation that the bank was artificially defaulting small businesses to agree new loans with higher interest rates.

Chair of the Treasury select committee Nicky Morgan had written to the regulator’s chief exec Andrew Bailey, arguing that since the report has been leaked, and is also in the hands of a number of third parties, it must be made available to the public. Morgan writes: “The FCA now has no control over the timing or content of further public disclosures from it. The balance has tipped firmly in favour of full publication. I have written to Mr Bailey to urge him to secure the approval of RBS to do so, without delay.”

In November last year the FCA produced a summary of findings from the report and have initiated a leak inquiry into the disclosure of the S166 report on RBS GRG to the BBC.

2. Lessons from the All Blacks: Culture Change in Organisations

Yesterday saw the release of The Respect and Responsibility Review, a report commissioned by New Zealand Rugby (NZR) investigating misconduct and providing recommendations as how to bring about culture change in the organisation.

Headed by NZ Law Society President Kathryn Beck, with a panel of individuals drawn from outside New Zealand Rugby, the task force reviewed 36 investigations into misconduct and outlined six key changes to be implemented over the next two years.

Whilst the legal sector may be a step removed from the drug and alcohol offences, violent and inappropriate sexual behaviour reported by the world’s best rugby players, the six goals determined by the NZR review panel are transferable to any organisation which aims to improve its inclusivity and foster an environment which builds and develops its people.

This article takes the six recommendations given to NZ rugby, and assesses the extent to which they have been embraced by the legal sector.

Goal 1: Inclusive Leadership

Training leaders to become more inclusive is arguably the best thing law firms can do to increase the representation of minority groups within their organisations. By making leaders aware of their unconscious biases, and how this impacts the decisions they make regarding people similar or different to them, this ties together progress forged by other diversity and inclusion initiatives (i.e. mentoring & sponsorship, affinity groups) to make a difference at the individual level.

Whilst the majority of law firms have now invested in unconscious bias training for partners and key stakeholders, emphasis is on raising awareness of bias rather than how to lead inclusively.

Goal 2: Developing People

A highly competitive market, the battle is not won once law firms have attracted the best talent; they need to develop and retain them too. The more innovative firms have started to do this by introducing work allocation managers, who both manage the utilisation of associate work whilst at the same time matching it to individual career aspirations and areas of skill development.

A number of firms are also considering revisions to their performance management reviews, with Allen & Overy and Slaughter and May piloting changes to their associate appraisal processes.

Goal 3: Nurturing Wellbeing

Law firms have made proactive steps in the last few years to nurture wellbeing within their workforce by introducing flexible working, as well as affinity groups to support parents and carers live a more balanced lifestyle. Beyond this, we have seen a bigger push from firms focussing on mental health (see our guest blog on the subject HERE) with firms introducing initiatives such as mental health first aiders, staff and lawyers trained in spotting and engaging with individuals who appear to be stressed or overworked

Goal 4: Gender Equity

Gender equality is one of the areas in which law firms have given the biggest push to increase diversity and inclusion in recent years. Whilst strong progress was made by the sector through initiatives such as female partner targets, women’s leadership programmes as well as mentoring and sponsorship, the number of female partners has stagnated in recent years (particularly amongst the largest firms) whist the promotion rate of female senior associates has, on the whole, declined.

This situation needs to be monitored as so the progress made to date is not undone by market factors such as Brexit, the impact of which are yet to be seen.

Goal 5: Proactive Engagement

For any organisation to become more diverse and inclusive, the tone has to be set from the top. Progress will not be made on any of the themes already discussed unless key decision makers act as positive role models and inclusive leaders in enforcing behaviour change and ‘calling out’ what is unacceptable.

The participation of law firm leaders in mentoring and sponsorship programmes sends a strong message that management are engaged in the issue, and that the partnership of tomorrow will be expected to foster an inclusive environment.

Goal 6: Accountable and Independent

Following on, there is no point engaging individuals to become more inclusive without having the accountability mechanisms in place to support change. This needs to happen both at the individual level with the provision of unconscious bias and inclusive leadership training, alongside the implementation of systems and processes to root out bias and help create an inclusive company culture. Examples of this in law firms include the provision of ‘blind CV’s’ and structured interviews when recruiting, and balanced promotion and remuneration committees.

In conclusion, culture change is hard. In both elite sport as it is in corporate culture, changing individual behaviours to help create a more inclusive environment where all can thrive is extremely difficult. It is here where organisations need to step up and take a multi-pronged approach to both assess and change individual behaviour on the micro level, whilst making sure this is supported by firm-wide systems and processes to enforce accountability to change.

Although the legal sector has some way to go, law firms are making important introductory steps in the right direction. As with the All Blacks, it will be interesting to see the progress made in the next few years.

If you are interested in this, or any other of the themes addressed in this article, please contact eclews@fidesseatch.com

Movers & Shakers of the week 

Panel Watch

Southwark Council begins tender process for it four year panel 

Appointments

Hogan Lovells senior management retained for a further two years
CEO Steve Immelt and deputy CEO David Hudd will stay on as senior management for Hogan Lovells for an additional two years, having been elected in July 2014

HSF replaces Gilchrist as Australian head 
Andrew Pike will replace Sue Gilchrist as the firm’s regional managing partner in Australia for Herbert Smith Freehills

Moves

Real estate investment fund hires first ever GC 
Nick Russell moves to real estate investment fund Henderson Park as its first general counsel, joining from Goldman Sachs where he served as senior counsel

PwC assign a new head of regulations
Regulatory counsel for ETF securities Marco Boldini is set to join PwC in January 2018 as head of regulations, base in London

DWF hires DLA veteran as chairman 
Sir Nigel Knowles will become chairman of DWF after retiring from DLA Piper as its chair last year, having spent over 40 years at the firm

EDF secures new nuclear business GC 
Head of power and renewables for Herbert Smith Freehills Julia Pyke has left the firm to join key client EDF as general counsel for nuclear new build businesses

CC further bolsters US capability 
Clifford Chance has continued its spate of US hiring, adding partners Joshua Berman and Glen Donath to its litigation team along with counsel Josua Fitzhugh.

Greenberg makes play in Poland 
An 11 lawyer real estate team hire has been made by Greenberg Traurig in Warsaw from Hogan Lovells, including local practice head Jolanta Nowakowska-Zimoch.

Dechert strengthens London finance practice
Partner Monica Gogna departs Ropes & Gray to join Dechert’s finance practice in London

HSF makes first NY corporate hire 
Corporate partner James Robinson leaves Morrison & Foerster in Tokyo to rejoin Herbert Smith Freehills and transfer to the firms New York office.

Reed Smith makes addition to investment funds group 
Kirkland & Ellis City funds partner Leith Moghli has left the firm to join Reed Smith’s private equity and investment funds practice in London.

Sidley boosts Brussels practice with privacy hire 
Privacy and cybersecurity partner Wim Nauwelaerts has joined Sidley Austin from Hunton & Williams in Brussels

Bird & Bird makes hires in London and Paris
Capital markets partners Clive Hopewell and Adam Carling both join Bird & Bird in London from Charles Russell Speechlys, whilst Paris partner Jean-Jacques Essombe Moussio joins the firm from Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe in Paris to lead its French banking & finance group.

Office Openings & Closings

Norton Rose expand legal process hub 
Norton Rose Fulbright will create 100 new jobs in its Newcastle legal process hub, including both legal and non-legal positions.

Osborne Clarke targets Sweden 
Osborne Clarke is opening an office in Stockholm, Sweden with the hire of Bird & Bird partner and head Swedish commercial group Henrik Bergstrom, and former founder of Stockholm boutique Baumgarten Bystroem Rooth & Partners Fredrik von Baumgarten. Also joining are three associates.

Eversheds make triple office launch 
In Russia, Eversheds Sutherland will be launching two new offices in St Petersburg and Moscow and one office Luxembourg through the acquisition of Nordic firm Hannes Snellman’s entire Russian offering, along with two partners and five associates from Simmons & Simmons

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn for regular market updates.

This week:

1. Six global banks edge closer towards launching their own digital currency 

The world of digital currencies and blockchain is on the cusp of entering the mainstream financial market as a new digital currency is being developed by six of the largest banks.

The consortium, pioneered by UBS, which initially consisted of global banks Deutsche Bank, Santander, BNY Mellon, as well as broker ICAP, developed the “Utility Settlement Coin” (USC), a new digital currency that is able to use blockchain technology to clear and settle securities trades in financial markets.

After gaining significant momentum, the group has more recently seen six new banks entering the fold, including Barclays, Credit Suisse and HSBC.

The project has entered the next stage of development, as members begin in-depth discussions with central banks with the aim to secure and finalise data privacy and cyber security protections.

There have been a number of digital and virtual currencies entering the market since their inception, the most famous being Bitcoin introduced in 2009, but the issues surrounding price volatility and lack of confidence in the decentralised system (that is where no individual party oversees the transaction) has led to a number of obstacles for growth.

(For a more in-depth explanation of blockchain technology, please see this article by the Wall Street Journal)

However, USC concentrates more on the use of blockchain technology than it does acting as a widespread currency. It will be linked to global currencies and the central bank, which will provide stability for the digital currency unlike some others which are publicly issued, such as Bitcoin. The currency will be used to speed up transaction and clearing processes as cash from a trade will be converted into utility settlement coins, to then be placed on a distributed ledger (i.e. the blockchain) and immediately exchanged for the financial securities being traded. The ledger bypasses the need for third-party verification, and enables trades to be carried out in a matter of seconds as opposed to two or three days.

They first announced the development of USC in September 2015 and have been testing the coin in a real market environment. The banks are hoping to launch the product in late 2018.

Regulation of fintech products such as digital currency and blockchain has been the largest question when implementing these new technologies in financial markets. Integrating digital currencies to current securities transactions may leave a number of grey areas that could cause failures if they were to be introduced too soon. Regulators need to be certain that the complex, sophisticated workings of blockchain technology will comply with rules already laid out, and if not, how regulation needs to be adapted in order to incorporate the potential risks involved.

The FCA is the leading regulator in Europe to focus on new technology and enabling start-up fintech businesses, as demonstrated by the revolutionary Project Innovate. It’s widely praised “Regulatory Sandbox”, which allows new technology and businesses to be tested in a live market under predetermined parameters, has allowed London to remain the fintech hub across Europe. It is key for the development of the banking system, which is still antiquated in its technology and speed of process that new digital currencies such as USC are allowed to develop whilst also being fit for purpose.

Financial crime is another crucial element to consider with digital currencies. Without full regulatory coverage, these currencies can become attractive for criminal activity, such as money laundering and terrorist financing. On the other hand, it has been said that the blockchain technology used to operate these currencies, if executed correctly, can in fact play a major role in the fight against financial crime. It would introduce complete transparency across all parts of a financial transaction, and in turn reduce fraud, by providing a common, visible platform for transactions.

If the Utility Settlement Coin does become an industry standard, used in transactions by all major banks and financial institutions, it could pave the way for further use of blockchain technology within financial services as well as other industry sectors generally.

2. Quinn focuses on retention through new ‘loyalty’ bonuses

A new bonus pool will be coming into play at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, revealed in a memo by firm chairman John Quinn that presents an outside the box approach to retaining associates.

The new form of compensation, titled an “associate longevity bonus pool”, is additional to existing bonuses, and will only concern second through to six year associates. The amount will be based upon firm performance, with one percent of Quinn Emanuel’s total profit going towards the new bonus pool.

These earnings however, can only be reaped if associates remain at the firm for a further three years after they’re awarded. Published in Above the Law, the following excerpt from Quinn’s memo explains how the new bonuses will be paid out:

“A qualifying second year associate for 2017 will get a provisional award in March 2018. That award will be paid in March 2021 as long as the associate is still with the Firm at that time. The same associate will be eligible to receive an award in March 2019. That award would be paid in 2022. The same associate would also be eligible for an award in March 2020 which would be payable in March 2023, and so on until the associate’s 7th year at which point the associate is no longer eligible for new awards but can keep collecting old awards as long as the associate does not resign before an award is due to be paid.”

It certainly is a creative attempt to attract and retain associates, but begs the question of how Quinn’s current retention rate looks. With such an extensive length of time to wait before gaining access to this extra compensation, this proposal may well show signs of retention struggles amongst mid-level associates.

On the other hand, the firm has experienced rising revenues and solid profits, as it has previously shown with $35,000 signing bonuses for third-year law students and most notably a hike in last year’s PEP that surpassed $5 million. The significant growth of its London offering also shows no signs of abating, with last year’s profit increasing by 21% to £32.8m.

Nevertheless, for a US heavyweight with significant standing in the market to be introducing such a tool, it will be interesting to see whether UK firms, who increasingly experience associate departures to US firms with Quinn’s brand, will adopt the same approach.

Movers & Shakers of the week 

Panel Watch 

Government legal services panel appoints nine law firms as adviser, including four from the magic circle

Moves

Pinsents gains capital markets duo

Capital markets partners Julian Stainer and Gareth Jones have both left Berwin Leighton Paisner to join Pinsent Masons in the firm’s London office

Ropes loses further partner in London to Kirkland

Anand Damodaran is set to join Kirkland & Ellis from Ropes & Gray as a partner in its Investment Funds group in London

Simpson Thacher hires from magic circle in Washington

Allen & Overy’s Washington office loses partner and co-head of global competition John Terzaken to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

Office Openings 

Stephenson Harwood opens six Asian office in Myanmar

Quinn Emanuel sets up in Stuttgart, marking its fourth German office

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1.) Amsterdam enters the running for next major financial district post Brexit fallout

Amsterdam has seen a flurry of activity over the last month, with various financial institutions choosing to shift their bases over to the Netherlands rather than the anticipated districts, such as Frankfurt and Dublin. This month it was announced that two leading FX traders, MarketAxess and Tradeweb, will be setting up in Amsterdam, whilst NatWest Markets Division and Japan’s largest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group are also planning to house their investment operations there.

This week we have taken a look at some of the reasons why this trend is beginning to emerge and what makes Amsterdam such an attractive option.

Regulation

For traders, Amsterdam poses a viable option for a European hub. The experience built up by the Netherlands Authority for Financial Markets (AFM) offers a regulatory incentive for trading firms as the Dutch licence is essentially tailor-made for markets activity.

Due to the lengthy history of trading in the Dutch financial district as well as its openness towards derivatives, the AFM expresses a more liberal outlook on these products compared to other regulators.

A major incentive specifically for proprietary trading firms is the rare ability to trade directly with big pension funds and insurance companies without considering them clients, something which massively reduces their legal and regulatory burden and is uncommon in other EU locations.

High frequency trading

It can’t be denied that Amsterdam presents essential benefits for high frequency traders. The city operates on some the world’s fastest data links, a fundamental aspect to the operation of HFTs.

Good data connectivity will further benefit businesses in the foreign exchange industry, for whom speed is also vital. However, due to the existing high-speed sub-Atlantic cables between London and New York, primary bases for these institutions may well remain in London.

After the financial crisis in 2008, Amsterdam suffered a blow to its financial services economy, leading to cap on bonuses for individuals working in this sector. For prop traders however, they remain unaffected by the bonus cap as they don’t use depositors’ money and therefore wouldn’t ever require a taxpayer bailout. Although this barrier would deter the larger banks from settling in the city, traders can enjoy the logistical and regulatory benefits without the financial downfall.

Technology

It’s no surprise given Amsterdam’s setup as the ideal hub for high frequency trading, but the Dutch have also fostered a burgeoning fintech movement across all areas of banking and finance, which is driven by their appetite for lean efficiencies and advancements in technology. The AFM is one of the most forward-thinking regulators in catering for innovation in financial markets and those choosing the Dutch city as its new base will likely benefit from this when it comes to staying ahead of the curve and integrating fintech as part of its offering.

Overall, there is a clear incentive for traders to move to the Netherlands, however, due to disproportion in advantages for traders compared to major banks, it could bring about a fragmentation of the financial services sector. As the trading community mulls over a move to the Netherlands; retail banks consider a shift to Dublin; many firms likely to remain in London, and various larger players moving to Frankfurt – it looks like everyone could win a piece of the pie.

If you would like to talk further about opportunities in the Dutch market, please get in touch with Directors Tom Spence (tspence@fidessearch.com / 0203 642 1871) and Phil Burdon (pburdon@fidessearch.com / 0203 642 1873) who lead our Amsterdam offering and have an extensive network in the local market which they have built over a number of years working in the region

2.) Movers & Shakers

PANEL WATCH

Simmons wins spot on new government finance panel

APPOINTMENTS

Former Channel 4 GC to join London media law boutique

DLA Piper shakes up Asia leadership with new managing and senior partners

PARTNER MOVES

Ashurst hires Bakers finance trio in Germany

German banking and finance head Martin Kaiser moves to Ashurst with Associates Sahra Demirbilek and Stephan Lehnen.

DLA recruits Kirkland and ex-Gibson Dunn partners in double leveraged finance hire

Former Gibson Dunn & Crutcher partner Philip Crump joins DLA in London, alongside Kirkland & Ellis partner Doug Murning in Hong Kong.

Dentons makes four-strong team hire from Baker McKenzie to launch new Netherlands practice

Partners Jurjen Bevers, Heico Reinoud, Paul Halprin and Marnix Veldhuijzenjoin become the first to join specialist Tax practice Dentons Bokel.

Kirkland takes five-partner Ropes enforcement team in the US, London and Hong Kong

Kirkland & Ellis has recruited a five-partner investigations and government enforcement team from Ropes & Gray, including Chicago managing partner and global anti-corruption and international risks co-chair Asheesh Goel, New York securities and futures enforcement co-head Zachary Brez, alongside three other government enforcement partners – Kim Nemirow in Chicago, Marcus Thompson in London and Cori Lable in Hong Kong.

Latham hires Linklaters M&A partner in Duesseldorf

Latham & Watkins has recruited Linklaters M&A partner Nikolaos Paschos in Duesseldorf.

Norton Rose disputes partner exits to lead Pillsbury global arbitration practice

US firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has taken on international disputes lawyer Deborah Ruff from Norton Rose Fulbright to launch a London dispute practice

MERGERS & ALLIANCES

Browne Jacobson and Beale & Co end merger talks

OFFICE OPENINGS AND CLOSINGS

Hill Dickinson opens fifth UK office with Leeds launch

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1) New Data Privacy Bill Announced

On Monday the British government laid out its statement of intent regarding the country’s new Data Protection Bill. This will give individuals more control over their personal data by introducing a ‘right to be forgotten’, and asking social media companies such as Twitter and Facebook to delete their personal data.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) will also be given more power to defend consumer interests and issue much higher fines for non-compliance, of up to £17 million or four percent of global turnover, in cases of the most serious data breaches.

“It will give people more control over their data, require more consent for its use, and prepare Britain for Brexit” said government Digital minister Matt Hancock.

Replacing the Data Protection Act, the main aim of the bill is to ensure that the UK’s laws are compliant with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), to be introduced next year, and ensure that data can continue to flow freely between the UK and other EU countries.

Under the proposed Data Protection Bill, companies will have to set out clearly and without a fee what information they hold, how they intend to use it as well as gain a clear and unambiguous indication of consent from the customer for the use of their data. The bill also expands the definition of personal data to include IP addresses, internet cookies, and DNA.

According to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, research has shown that “more than 80 per cent of people feel that they do not have complete control over their data online.”

With the introduction of the Data Protection Bill, the government is moving to address the current reality of storing customer data in the age of mass data collection, smartphones and social media.

This is likely to continue the focus and investment on the privacy and security of customer data from financial services and law firms for the foreseeable future.

2) Movers & Shakers

APPOINTMENTS

Pharmaceutical giant Teva appoints new Europe general counsel

Deputy GC Bibianne Bon replaces longstanding GC Galit Gonen

PA Group appoints new general counsel after Guardian exit

Louise Irwin joins the Press Association as its new counsel and company secretary

MOVES

Exits in North England for PwC Legal

PwC’s head of legal for the regions Neal Shepherd has left the firm less than three years after joining from Addleshaw Goddard.

Addleshaws exits to EY continue in Manchester

Real estate partner Colette Withey joins EY’s Manchester legal team

Hill Dickinson in talks to transfer £23m 16-partner insurance business to Keoghs

Partner vote imminent on the move to allow the firm to focus on areas of future strategic growth

Linklaters bolsters US disputes practice with hire of WilmerHale white collar partner

Ex-SEC counsel Doug Davison to join the Washington DC office of Linklaters

OFFICE OPENINGS & CLOSINGS

Pinsents takes four-partner Norton Rose team for Perth launch

Kennedys expansion continues as firm recruits four-strong team for Melbourne launch

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1. Ashurst sees five partner departures in NY amid office restructuring

Ashurst aims to shift the focus of its US structured finance practice as the remaining five CLO partners prepare to move to Chapman and Cutler.

Five finance partners specialising in collateralised loan obligations (CLOs), who initially joined as part of a ten partner team hire from McKee Nelson, are the last of the team to depart the firm’s New York office, highlighting a shift in focus for its US structured finance practice.

Partners Pat Quill, David Nirenberg, Steve Kopp, Doug Bird and Tom Glushko have already left the firm, confirming that Ashurst is scaling back its CLOs offering. The firm’s global head of finance Helen Burton has argued there is “a lack of alignment with the wider global finance business”, particularly given that the firm no longer has a global CLO practice group.

The balance of the firm’s finance practice first began to shift away from CLOs when securitisation heavyweight David Quirolo left the firm’s London office to join Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft in September 2014.

These departures mark the last of the McKee Nelson team to exit Ashurst. US head of securities Scott Faga and former US managing partner Eugene Ferrer both left for Paul Hastings in 2015, whilst Alice Yurke and Richard Davis joined Jones Day and DLA Piper respectively, and Michael Voldstad retired from the partnership earlier this year.

The restructuring has left Ashurst with three banking and finance partners in New York, strongly focused on banking, energy and infrastructure. As the firm looks to replenish it New York capability, it is expected that upcoming hires will likely be made in the projects and banking space, stepping away from the structured finance work that the firm’s New York practice was previously known for.

As Ashurst begins to make a comeback from the flurry of departures it faced last year, it seems to a fitting time for the firm to reassess its strategic hiring priorities. They have already begun rebuilding the European finance practice, most recently hiring Linklaters leveraged finance senior associate Pierre Roux as a partner in its Paris office in May this year, and appointing banking partner Mario Lisanti to head up the Milan finance practice from Norton Rose Fulbright.

2. Proposals to extend Senior Managers Regime released 

The Senior Manager’s Regime (SMCR) is to be extended to 47,000 firms including dentists, gyms and tool hire companies that offer credit to customers, according to FCA proposals released this week.

The Financial Conduct Authority also estimated that the expansion will cost firms £550m, with up to £190m of ongoing costs for the firms involved. It will apply to all solo-regulated firms and replace the current Approved Persons Regime.

Proportionating the level of requirements to the size of the firm, under the proposals companies have been categorised as limited, core or enhanced in scope. Those identified as limited are expected to face the highest set up and ongoing costs, whilst there will be additional requirements that apply only to the ‘enhanced’ regime (less than 1% of institutions). These include additional Senior Management Functions, additional Prescribed Responsibilities, a Responsibilities Map, Handover Procedures and the requirement that there be a Senior Manager responsible for every area of the firm (Overall Responsibility).

As a result, the FCA have warned that some cost increases on firms will pass through to consumers in the form of higher prices, while senior managers “may demand bigger pay deals”. However, the watchdog believes as a result of the changes, the quality of products and services offered should increase, with the extension of the SMCR being essential to drive culture change forward within the sector.

Entering into force in March 2016, and covering 900 banks and building societies, the SMCR ensures greater accountability for individual actions by more clearly defining the roles and responsibilities of those in senior functions. While it currently applies just to lenders and insurers, the extended rules are expected to come into force by 2018.

The Treasury called for the broadening of the new regime two years ago when it also dropped a plan to “reverse the burden of proof” for managers, which would assume the senior manager in charge was guilty unless proven otherwise if misconduct was discovered.

Part of the changes would also see the scrapping of the FCA register. Whilst senior managers will still be listed, most approved persons will become significant harm functions and will not need to be pre-approved by the FCA or be on the register. It is also a cause for concern as there will be no publically available list of advisers for consumers to review.

The consultation period now runs until 3^rd November for the industry to comment on the proposals released on the FCA’s website. With the FCA likely to pay particularly close attention to areas like training in the conduct rules, risk management and individuals whose jobs impact customers directly, it is clear that many of the expanded firms will need to prepare for some critical milestones and get ready for a step-change in their internal policies and procedures.

Movers & Shakers of the week 

Appointments

Freshfields managing partner Chris Pugh steps down before the end of his term

Moves

London head of regulatory departs Quinn Emanuel after months of joining

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan London financial services and regulatory partner David Berman will be joining Latham & Watkins in August this year, just months after resigning from Macfarlanes to join the firm

Former general counsel for HK regulator joins O’Melveny

Competition expert Philip Monaghan has left his position as general counsel for the Hong Kong Competition Commission to become a partner in the HK office of O’Melveny & Myers.

HSF arbitration partner exits New York office

Arbitration partner Laurence Shore leaves Herbert Smith Freehills in New York to relocate to Italy, joining Italian firm BonelliErede in Milan.

Freshfields bolsters international IP offering

Menachem Kaplan has joined Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in the US as its new head of IP for the region. He joins from Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison where he was counsel.

KWM make first European lateral partner hire since UK office shut down

King & Wood Mallseons have hired corporate partner Hui Zhao into the firms Frankfurt office from German-based Noerr.

Owners of Snapchat looks for its next GC

Social media company Snap needs to appoint a new general counsel as head of legal Chris Handman steps down

Linklaters hire PE veteran in Germany

Christopher Kellett has joined Linklaters’ private equity practice in Frankfurt after having retired from Clifford Chance a few months ago

Ashurst loses a team of structured finance partners following US restructuring

Five NY-based finance partners depart Ashurst as the firm drops its collateralised loan obligation (CLO) offering. Pat Quill, David Nirenberg, Steve Kopp, Doug Bird and Tom Glushko will all join Chapman and Cutler

Partner promotions

Two non-lawyers have been promoted to senior non-equity partners at Mischon de Reya

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

Latest forex fine goes to BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas has been fined a further $246m this week by the US central bank that relates back to the manipulation of foreign exchange rates that took place between 2007 and 2013.

The Federal Reserve announced the penalty on Monday this week, arguing that the bank executed “unsafe and unsound practices in the foreign exchange markets”. This takes the total amount of fines they’ve delivered for forex manipulation to over $2bn, with the potential of more to come as a number of the central banks cases remain ongoing.

The bank also agreed to pay $350m to the New York Department of Financial Services in May to settle allegations of currency rigging.

The misconduct was carried out by numerous institutions, where traders from multiple global banks used electronic chat rooms to discuss and rig currency rates.

BNP Paribas is just the latest firm to be penalised for this scandal. Bank of America has also received a fine by the Federal Reserve and in May 2015, Barclays, RBS, Citi, JP Morgan and UBS were fined $5.7bn by the Department of Justice in New York. Barclays, RBS, Citigroup and JP Morgan all plead guilty, whilst UBS was granted immunity for being the first to report the rate rigging.

Meanwhile, three former London-based traders appeared in New York federal court on Monday to plead not guilty to charges connected with the manipulation of the foreign exchange market. Chris Ashton was Barclays’ global head of spot currency trading, Rohan Ramchandani was Citigroup’s head of G-10 spot currency trading, and Richard Usher was the chief currency spot trader for JP Morgan. All three face charges which could involve 10 years imprisonment and $1 million fine.

Investigations into rate rigging are still being run by US regulators, whereas the Serious Fraud Office closed its criminal investigation into allegations of price-rigging in March last year.

SRA hands out record-breaking fine  

This week saw the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) hand down the largest-ever sanction imposed against a law firm, as it fined White & Case £250,000 for failures to identify conflicts of interest and protect confidential client information.

The case in question relates to a $2bn Ukrainian commercial dispute, where the firm represented Ukrainian oligarch Victor Pinchuck in suing Ukrainian tycoons Igor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov.

In January 2014, Mr Justice Field barred the firm from acting on the case after the failure to identify the conflict of interest was uncovered.

Three years on, the SDT found that the firm had allowed instructions to be accepted to undertake further work for clients without taking adequate steps to ensure that no conflict of interest existed or ensure the confidentiality of information provided to the firm by clients was protected, in such breaching the SRA code of conduct and principals.

It also fined lead partner David Goldberg £50,000 for his role in the case, and providing confidential information concerning the work undertaken to another partner in the firm involved in acting on a conflicting matter.

The SDT, however, did not allege that the firm or Goldberg had acted dishonestly, and did not pursue allegations of lack of integrity against either him or the firm.

White & Case, who assisted the SDT in this matter, agreed that it acted ‘recklessly’ regarding checks for client conflicts and ensuring the confidentiality of client information.

Prior to this, the SRA’s previous highest sanction of a law firm was against Clyde & Co. in March, when the SDT fined the firm and three of its partners £80,000 for breaching accounting and anti-money laundering rules

Movers & Shakers of the Week

Appointments

BLM names new managing partner after surprise exit of former chief

Vivienne Williams succeeds Gary Allison who departs eight months into a three-year term as head of the firm.

Partner Moves

Former Clifford Chance German private equity chief set for Linklaters move

Christopher Kellett is set to join magic circle rival Linklaters after 20 years at CC

Gibson Dunn hires fifth European Ashurst partner since June

German finance partner Sebastian Schoon joins the Munich office of Gibson Dunn.

Clyde & Co boost IP practice with five-strong team in China

Elliot Papageorgiou joins the Shanghai office of Clyde & Co from IP specialist firm Rouse, and is to be joined by four other Chinese-licensed lawyers.

Enyo Law founder leaves for new role at litigation activist group

Michael Green has left Enyo Law to join RGL Management Limited, an entity comprised of lawyers who are pursuing RBS on behalf of shareholders suing the bank over its role in the financial crisis.

Freshfields competition litigation head leaves for pupillage

Jon Lawrence is departing the Magic Circle firm to take up a pupillage at Brick Court Chambers

Office Openings & Closings 

Lawyers on Demand set to enter the Middle East

PwC launches Indonesian legal practice as Jakarta firm joins network

Linklaters launches low cost legal centre in Italy

Mergers & Alliances 

DLA Piper acquires Los Angeles boutique firm Liner, boosting its capability by 60 lawyers

Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update. Take a look at this week’s key trends, moves and developments in legal and compliance.

Tweet us @Fides_Search to let us know your thoughts.

This week:

1. London makes a play to attract colossal Aramco listing

With the biggest ever IPO in history preparing to float, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) looks to amend regulations for stock market listings in an attempt to lure Saudi Aramco’s listing to London.

On Thursday, the FCA released its proposal to introduce a separate listing category for companies controlled by sovereign countries, which lowers certain requirements necessary to float on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) compared to other premium listings.

Currently, in order to qualify as a premium listing, companies must float a minimum of 25% of its shares on the exchange, and has to gain prior approval from independent shareholders for transactions between the state and the company, i.e. the purchase of other state owned assets, in Aramco’s case. Under the new proposed rules, sovereign-owned companies would forgo these requirements.

FCA chief exec Andrew Bailey has commented that: “Refining the listing regime in this way would make UK markets more accessible whilst ensuring that the protections afforded by our premium listing regime are focused and proportionate.

“Sovereign owners are different from private sector individuals or companies – both in their motivations and in their nature.”

Looser regulation will no doubt make the LSE more attractive for Aramco, but some experts argue that the new rules may cause damage to investor protection.

The changes would reverse some of the advancements made in 2013 on corporate governance and the protection of minority shareholders, where regulations were put in place after various LSE listed, overseas-headquartered companies were engaging in unethical practice. These problems caused investors to lose respect for the exchange as they argued there was an over-liberalisation of the listing regime, with the London Stock Exchange and Financial Services Authority concentrating too heavily on attracting major foreign investors which brought in lower quality companies.

Despite this, the proposed new listing regime offer major benefits for London as it would not only help entice Saudi Aramco to float, but also extend these benefits to other state-controlled companies looking to list, which particularly concerns various Gulf countries who have been considering a flotation for their respective state-owned oil assets.

Saudi Aramco’s IPO is expected to take place in late 2018/early 2019 is valued at approximately $2 trillion.

2. Financials round-up: Analysis of law firm earnings for 2016-17

With the financial results season well underway, we take a look at the results posted so far as law firms reveal their headline figures for 2016-17.

The first round of results to reveal the true extent of last June’s Brexit vote, and slow down of transactional activity, it will be interesting to see the extent to which this has been offset by post-Brexit currency fluctuations.

Allen & Overy emerged as one of the strongest performers in this year’s round of results, posting double-digit growth across all metrics with revenue and profit per equity partner figures (PEP) rising to record levels. Revenue rose to £1.52bn, whilst PEP reached £1.51m, a 26% increase on last year’s results.

Managing partner Andrew Ballheimer cited multijurisdictional work behind the firms growth, with 74% of total revenue derived from matters involving two or more countries, with A&O’s alternative delivery models (Peerpoint, aosphere and MarginMatrix) having their strongest performing year yet.

Not to be outdone, Clifford Chance also posted record-breaking financial results, with turnover climbing 11% to £1.54bn and PEP increasing 12% to £1.38m against a consistent equity partner count.

Buoyed by strong performances in London and Asia, the UK brought in £507m in turnover, an increase of 4%, which equated to 33% of total revenue. Local currency gains in Asia also translated to 18% of total sterling revenue. Despite this turnover in the US remained flat, whilst the firm made losses in Europe and the Middle East.

Linklaters on the other hand made more modest gains, posting a 7.8% hike in PEP alongside a revenue rise of almost 10% to £1.44bn.

Of the Magic Circle, Freshfields posted the most disappointing set of results with a flat turnover and shrinking net profit for 2016-17. The firm posted revenue of £1.33bn, a marginal increase of just 0.3% on last year, while net profit fell by just under 1% to £612m.

Outside of the Magic Circle firms experienced mixed results, with Herbert Smith Freehills, Eversheds Sutherland, Travers Smith and Berwin Leighton Paisner all posting revenue increases in the face of falling PEP.

Pinsent Masons performed well reporting double digit PEP and revenue growth, with Macfarlanes, Ashurst and Simmons & Simmons all rebounding after a challenging 2015-16.

Meanwhile, litigation boutique Stewarts Law entered the UK top 50 for the first time, posting a 25% increase in revenue and 30% jump in PEP.

Firms most heavily impacted by political conditions include RPC and CMS, who experienced a dip in net profit and revenue respectively.

Movers & Shakers of the week 

Panel Watch

Santander’s UK legal roster to include Slaughters and Ashurst after Spanish banking giant increases its host of firms
The Spanish banking giant has increased its legal roster which now includes Ashurst and Slaughter and May.

Appointments

Three new board members for Ashurst after having a mixed year
After a mixed year of increased revenue but the loss of three partners, Ashurst has decided to promote three new board members to stabilise the firm.

Daily Mail’s GC has stepped down
Claire Chapman, the Daily Mail’s general counsel and company secretary has left the company after almost five years.

Leung retires after 26 long years at Slaughter and May
Slaughter and May partner Miranda Leung, has decided to retire from the firm for personal reasons after 26 years.

Moves

Baker McKenzie’s London office to be headed by former Linklaters global COO
Baker McKenzie will be introducing a new COO, Simon Thompson who formally worked as Linklaters global COO, as of August.

GC Cordon exits for new role in venture capital
General counsel Christine Cordon has decided to leave her role at Secret Escapes to try her abilities as the new head of legal at venture capital business Arts Alliance Ventures.

Mishcon boosts fledgling cyber security consultancy service
Mike Owen from PwC has joined Mishcon de Reya as it expands their cyber security consultancy service.

Scott Southgate has taken up a new role at the Hampshire Trust Bank after leaving his job as Former Investec private bank general counsel.
After nine years at the bank, Scott Southgate has decided to make a move to the Hampshire Trust Bank.

Cooley hires team from Wilson Sonsini to boost their American Offices
Cooley hopes to boost offices in New York and Washington after hiring team from Wilson Sonsini.

Office Openings & Closings

Matheson decides to open a third office in the US but this time in San Francisco
Irish firm Matheson has decided to expand its international footprint, after launching a third US office but this time in San Francisco.

Peters & Peters lawyers leave to start up their own business crime firm
Former Peters & Peters lawyers Anand Doobay and Christina Russell have opened a business crime firm to be called Boutique Law.