David is a corporate lawyer of 35 years’ standing who specialises in advising businesses within the financial and insurance sectors on a range of transactional and BAU issues, including in particular as regards to mutual societies. His work in these sectors encompasses FCA and PRA regulatory issues, finance and leasing, banking and security, derivatives, investment management and funds, long-term and general insurance and reinsurance, mortgage funding, consumer credit and data protection.
David also advises across a broad range of business sectors on general corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions, business transfers, reorganisations and restructuring, joint ventures, shareholder agreements and various commercial contracts (particularly in relation to IT – outsourcing, software and platform licensing, cloud computing and SAAS).
As well as being qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales, David is also a New Zealand-qualified barrister and solicitor. He advises in both English and French languages.
Thank you for the tremendous effort and support. I very much appreciate the work itself but also the manner and professionalism with which it was approached: yet further vindication of our decision to have Keystone supporting us on venture capital deals.
Joe Seager-Dupuy, Investment Director, True Global
Expertise
- FCA and PRA regulatory issues
- Finance and leasing
- Derivatives
- Investment management and funds
- Consumer credit and data protection
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Business transfers
- Reorganisations and restructurings
- Joint ventures
- Shareholder agreements
- Commercial contracts
- Banking and security transactions
- Mutual societies
- Long-term and general insurance and reinsurance
- Mortgage funding
Experience
- Led (as GC) on the negotiation and documenting of three lifetime mortgage funding and administration arrangements, including in relation to the establishment of a limited partnership fund for collectivised funding. Transaction values varied from £50m up to £250m.
- Led (as GC) on the negotiation and documenting of outsourced SAAS investment and insurance product platform with Irish-based and US-owned software services company and cloud-based platforming of customer and marketing database with Adobe, in each case for a household-name mutual society.
- Led (as GC) on the negotiation and documenting of the acquisition, co-funding and joint-venture aspects of establishing a household-name lifetime mortgage lending and administration operation.
- Lead partner on the merger of two of the UK’s largest friendly societies with requisite regulatory and fiscal approvals resulting in a single merged entity with in excess of £7bn under management.
- Lead partner, dealing in French and English languages, on the acquisition of Provident Insurance and Sterling Insurance by a UK subsidiary of Covéa (France’s largest mutual insurance group) with deal values of between £50m and £80m each.
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Recognition
David has been recognised by the Legal 500 Legal Directory as showing “sound judgement and creative thinking”.
Career
David qualified as a solicitor in 1984. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2019, he worked at the following firms:
- Ashfords
- Reed Smith