INTRODUCTION

Financial Services Regulatory (“FSR”) is a cross-disciplinary practice encompassing both transactional and advisory work. While clients may seek FSR lawyers for stand-alone advice, FSR compliance issues may also arise during a complex transaction and, in such cases, a FSR lawyer may be approached by colleagues in other practice areas such as Mergers and Acquisitions, Banking and Finance or Debt and Equity Capital Markets to provide advice on a specific financial regulatory issue.

SUB-AREAS

• Financial Market Infrastructures – Financial market infrastructures (“FMIs”) are critically important infrastructures that support the overall functioning of the financial system. FMIs facilitate the clearing, settling or recording of financial transactions and include payment systems, central securities depositories, securities settlement systems, central counterparties and trade repositories. Given their systemic importance, FMIs are subject to stringent oversight as the failure of FMIs may pose significant risks to both domestic and international financial markets.
• Banking – Banks are required to comply with a comprehensive set of rules and regulations governing the various banking activities that they may undertake, including deposit-taking and lending. Banks may also be subject to international standards (such as the Basel regulations put forth by the Basel Committee on Bank Supervision) to the extent that such standards are      implemented by their home regulators. Additionally, banks may need to contend with issues related to banking secrecy and compliance with anti-money laundering regulations.
• Insurance – Financial institutions in the insurance sector include insurers and insurance brokers. FSR lawyers may be involved in advising on general licensing issues and compliance with product-related requirements and assisting with the drafting of product documentation.  
• Capital Markets Intermediaries – Capital markets intermediaries (“CMIs”) facilitate transactions in financial instruments and products generally. CMIs may include broker-dealers, fund managers, corporate finance advisers, credit-rating agencies, trust companies and financial advisers. 
• Payment Service Providers – Financial institutions that facilitate the flow of funds and the execution of payment transactions are often regulated as Payment Service Providers (“PSPs”). PSPs can include entities such as remittance agents, issuers of stored value and providers of payment applications and gateways.
• Fintech – Fintech companies leverage innovative and cutting-edge technology to disrupt      traditional financial services models. In most jurisdictions, including Singapore, there is currently no fintech-specific legislation. Consequently, companies must operate within the existing legal framework (often navigating regulations that were not designed with Fintech models in mind). FSR lawyers play an important role by helping Fintech companies successfully navigate the complex regulatory landscape.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT

The primary focus of  an FSR lawyer is to provide sound and practical advice that informs clients of their licensing and regulatory obligations and to facilitate the compliance by the client with these      requirements. In Singapore, the regulatory framework for financial services regulation comprises a patchwork of various legislations and other regulatory materials such as notices and guidelines including the Securities and Futures Act, the Financial Advisers Act, the Banking Act, the Payment Services Act, the Insurance Act and the Commodity Trading Act.

FSR lawyers also often provide advice and support to their clients in applying for licenses exemptions (where applicable), or other authorisations to conduct regulated financial activities or to offer financial products and services. Such work typically involves making submissions and representations to regulators and facilitating dialogue between the clients and regulatory authorities. In general, clients served by FSR lawyers range from up-and-coming start-ups to large multinational corporations, spanning various classes of financial institutions and industry sub-sectors.

As financial services regulations are constantly evolving, lawyers in this practice area must constantly keep abreast of changes in the law and any proposed changes under public consultation. To ensure that a client is compliant, FSR lawyers may prepare compliance matrices, draft policy documents, conduct audits or assessments, and provide training to the client and their staff. Where new rules are proposed, clients may also pre-emptively engage external lawyers to advise on preparatory steps and required documentation updates  ahead of the regulations coming into effect.          .

To excel as a FSR lawyer, one should enjoy the intellectual rigour of interpreting and applying ever-evolving and complex laws and regulations. The ability to distil and clearly communicate regulatory requirements and their application to a client’s case is essential as clients often prefer concise advice over lengthy memos. A forward-thinking approach is also critical as, given the constant changes in laws, clients may not always be aware of their changing obligations and will rely on FSR lawyers to update them and recommend necessary actions.     .