FinTech

The FinTech team of CMS in the Netherlands combines the strengths of market-leading legal and technological expertise, with industry knowledge. The team is led by Partners Tessa Penninks and Clair Wermers, who are also part of the international FinTech group of CMS.

Interdisciplinary FinTech team

Our interdisciplinary FinTech team includes various experienced specialists with a background in Banking & Finance, Corporate/M&A, Equity Capital Markets & Funds, IT & Data Protection & Cyber security. FinTech is an interdisciplinary matter and we strive to provide the best legal advice by a team covering all relevant areas of expertise. CMS' full service approach and deep industry expertise enables us to serve the full spectrum of players in the FinTech market, including the largest retail and investment banks, FinTech investors, established FinTech companies, insurers (incl. InsurTech), start-ups, as well as companies in other sectors who are using FinTech capabilities in their own business models (e.g. Tech Payments and Lending solutions, NFTs).

FinTech focus areas

Within the broad scale of FinTech areas we specifically focus on the following domains:

• Payments & Lending;
• Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies (digital assets) and;
• Securities & Financing.

Participation and active involvement in FinTech ecosystems

The FinTech team at CMS differentiates itself from other firms by combining their legal and regulatory acumen with technical know-how, such as coding and by staying on top of new tech developments. Since developments in FinTech are happening at a fast pace, it's important for our team members to connect with other organizations in order to stay abreast of all the newest trends and to share our knowledge with others. We do this by taking an active role in various relevant FinTech related industry associations, such as:

• Holland FinTech: the independent, Dutch FinTech ecosystem with 300+ companies in their network. For example, last year we contributed to the interactive AMLD5 web guide: AMLD5 Guide - Holland FinTech.
• 2Tokens: a public/private organization supported by ministries, the industry, universities, banks, exchanges and the regulators. It brings together knowledge/expertise to reduce the barriers of the adoption of tokenization and help realize the wider societal benefits. Clair Wermers is a member of the Advisory Board of 2Tokens.
• Dutch Blockchain Coalition (DBC): we joined the DBC in 2017. We support the digital identity track of the coalition by providing advice on privacy and cyber security implications of digital identity.