FInsight

The growth of the African fintech ecosystem is driven by the creation of value through solving real problems within large user markets, not just the availability of capital. In this episode of FInsight, Ashlin Perumall, a partner from our Corporate and M&A practice in Johannesburg and Sarah Williams, an associate from our financial services practice in London, discuss the fintech landscape in South Africa and other key markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. They take a closer look at investment drivers and opportunities, current and emerging market segments, and key commercial and regulatory developments affecting the fintech ecosystem in the region.

In this episode of FInsight, London partners Sue McLean, Mark Simpson, and David Hart talk about UK Fintech Week 2022. They cover the biggest trends and developments around Fintech in the UK, with special focus on the expected topics throughout the event. The episode takes a closer look at the investment landscape (including the UK's position as a fintech hub, active investors and top sub-sectors) and the current and expected regulatory developments that fintech players need to watch out for.

In this episode, part of the on-going Sovereigns Series: Worlds in Motion, Pete Chapman and Lucy Shawdon from our Compliance and Investigations team in London take a look at compliance in a changing landscape, specifically in the context of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs). The episode goes through current developments, emerging trends, risks, and other important items that sovereign wealth funds need to consider, as we move to the post-pandemic economy. It also covers topics around due diligence and risk management, focusing on geographic, sectoral, litigation, reputational and regulatory risks.

Baker McKenzie's fifth annual report, The Year Ahead: Global Disputes Forecast 2022, addresses key trends in the evolving disputes landscape. The report includes a new survey of 600 senior legal and risk leaders from large companies across the world.

Partners Amy Greer (New York), Marc Thorley (London) and Carolina Duque (Bogota) talk about the key findings relevant for financial institutions. The episode examines the factors driving the increase in disputes and emerging concerns related to liabilities. It also covers litigation around digital transformation, tax, 'business-as-usual' conduct, and; new environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards.

In the latest iteration of our Digital Transformation and Cloud Survey, financial institutions (FIs) identify cost reduction and increased security as top benefits from investment in cloud computing. Conversely, data privacy and cybersecurity issues are identified as top concerns.

In this episode, Carolina Duque, a partner from our Bogota office talks to Alessandro Celli, a partner from our Zurich office and global fintech lead and Peter R. George, a partner from our Chicago office who is familiar with the history of the survey and has seen key developments for FIs over the years. They go through the recent findings relevant to FIs and discuss associated risks and vulnerabilities that respondents highlighted. They also cover cyber liability insurance, investment in private cloud offerings, data privacy, cybersecurity, and future challenges that FIs should prepare for.

In the aftermath of COVID-19 and the resulting low-yielding environment, sovereign actors are looking more than ever to real estate, infrastructure, private equity, private debt and other alternative assets for strategic investment opportunities.

In this second of two episodes, Baker McKenzie partners Pat McDonald (Chicago), James Burdett (London), Matt Legg (London), Guillaume Le Camus (Paris) and Diogo Duarte de Oliveira (Luxembourg) take a close look at sovereign wealth funds — our current observations of our SWF clients' approach to tax governance and structuring. In this episode, we take a closer look at some of the European tax issues currently affecting SWF's investment activity - particularly the increasing volume of tax transparency requirements.

In this episode of FInsight, Andrew Hedges and Kay She from Baker McKenzie's EMI group in London discuss their experience and observations while on the ground in Glasgow. They cover business imperatives and challenges affecting the global economy and how sovereign wealth funds are well-positioned to influence and make an impact on broader sustainability goals and action plans. As discussions on climate-related issues evolve from commitments to execution in the recent COP26 UN Climate Change Conference, we unpack some of the key takeaways relevant for sovereign wealth funds.

In the aftermath of COVID-19 and the resulting low-yielding environment, sovereign actors are looking more than ever to real estate, infrastructure, private equity, private debt and other alternative assets for strategic investment opportunities.

In this first of two episodes, Baker McKenzie partners Pat McDonald (Chicago), James Burdett (London), Matt Legg (London), Guillaume Le Camus (Paris), and Diogo Duarte de Oliveira (Luxembourg) take a close look at sovereign wealth funds - our current observations of our SWF clients' approach to tax governance and structuring. Our team examines the investment activities of sovereign players in the post-GFC and pandemic environment, and their areas of tax focus in M&A scenarios, including investing in the US.

Taking off from the guide Crypto Around the World, the second of two episodes takes a closer look at market abuse, sustainability, decentralized finance, and future developments. Sue McLean, a partner in our London office, talks to the team that started this project: Iris Barsan, counsel from our Paris office; Julian Hui, associate from our London office; and Chris Murrer, a US attorney in our Zurich office. They also cover specific regulatory and policy considerations, as well as the future impact of central bank digital currencies.

Financial institutions (FIs) surveyed by Baker McKenzie spent an average of USD 272 million each on litigation in 2020 - higher than any other industry - but their readiness strategies may not be keeping up with the scale of the challenge they face.

In this episode of FInsight, Baker McKenzie partners Daniela Fonseca Puggina from our Miami office and Jennifer Semko from our Washington D.C. office discuss litigation readiness for FIs. The episode also covers potential vulnerabilities and disputes that they need to prepare for, current and emerging trends in litigation (from our Litigation Intelligence Tool and Report), and how they can benefit from litigation preparedness.