Adrian is a leading fintech lawyer with a wealth of experience in advising on fund and asset management, retail finance and mortgage and consumer credit, payment services and electronic money, virtual and cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, and distributed ledger technology. His client base comprises financial institutions, high-net-worth individuals, start-ups, and major private and public companies in relation to regulation and compliance.
In addition to his general legal practice, Adrian is a founder of and an investor in a number of tech start-ups, providing him with a unique understanding of the issues faced by young and growing businesses.
He is also a mentor on the Barclays Techstars Accelerator, heavily engaged in shaping regional fintech hubs with the APPG on Fintech, and has assisted the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in relation to its RegTech initiatives since 2015, and more recently the FCA and Bank of England on Model Driven Machine Executable Regulation, supporting the development and adoption of new technologies that aid the delivery of regulatory requirements.
Expertise
- Financial services regulation, authorisations and contracts for asset management, P2P lending, consumer credit, mortgage and other regulated lending, payments and e-money services
- MiFID II, PRIIPS Directive, Prospectus Regulation, Market Abuse Regulation, Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive, Mortgage Credit Directive, Consumer Credit Directive
- Information technology
- Commercial contracts and online service terms
- Privacy and data protection
- Policy and public affairs
- Regulation and compliance
Experience
FCA Applications & Compliance
- Advised Moneyhub Enterprise on the FCA authorisation requirements under PSD2 as an AISP/PISP as well as drafting and negotiating core commercial documentation including Software as a Service Agreements.
- Advised Lifescale Limited on the FCA application for registration as a registered account information services provider under the Payment Services Regulations 2017.
- Assisted the venture arm of a large pharmaceutical multi-national with its FCA asset management authorisation application.
- Advised non-bank creditors, credit brokers and P2P platform operators on consumer credit regulation under the FCA Rules.
Financial Services Regulation
- Acted for a money management firm on various commercial agreements with bank sponsors, card providers and payment schemes and on regulatory compliance in respect of payment services, e-money and consumer credit activities.
- Acted for a large bank on the regulatory, payments and operational aspects of ring-fence banking compliance.
- Advised on AIFMD compliance by private equity, hedge and listed funds, their managers, depositories, custodians and valuers.
- Acted for long-standing client Think Money to revise its account documentation for compliance with new requirements under the Payment Services Regulations 2017.
- Advised on drafting standard suites of documentation for premium loan, personal loan, credit card and mortgage documentation.
Virtual & Cryptocurrencies
- Advised virtual currency businesses on the application of payments and money laundering regulation.
- Advised ParCoin on the establishment of a cryptocurrency stablecoin, including regulatory and fund structuring, and compliance with UK financial services legislation.
- Advised DADI following an analysis of the Whitepaper and Tokenomics paper relating to its cryptocurrency Initial Coin Offering, on legal issues including regulated activities, financial promotions, payment services and anti-money laundering requirements.
- Provided Acorn Collective with advice on regulatory structuring options to ensure compliance with UK financial services regulation, particularly on cryptocurrency/ICO, crowdfunding and funds regulation.
Other
- Assisted innovative API-first custody technology house, Seccl, with its client-facing custody terms and investment provider-facing custody services agreement.
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Recognition
Recognised as a Leading Individual by the Legal 500 2020 for Financial Services: Regulatory
‘Knowledgeable’ Adrian Shedden is commended for his ‘fast turnarounds and strong sense of perspective’ Legal 500 2017
Career
Adrian qualified as a solicitor in 2009. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2018, he worked at the following firms:
- Burges Salmon
- Norton Rose Fullbright
- King & Wood Mallesons