Norton Rose Fulbright is a noted thought leader in the blockchain and smart contracts space, having published some of the foremost recent legal commentary in the field. Chambers Global FinTech, 2018

Tier 1: FinTech | Legal 500 UK 2019
Tier 1: FinTech | Legal 500 China 2019
Tier 2: FinTech | Chambers Global 2019
FinTech Law Firm of the Year | Legal 500 UK 2019

Distributed ledgers, Blockchains and smart contracts have the potential to transform business, government and society. Financial institutions, in particular, are exploring the possibilities that distributed ledger technology offers them to streamline and automate many of their processes and to offer new products and services.

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are the most high profile applications of these technologies. However, the range of potential applications extends far beyond cryptocurrencies and includes, for example, trade execution and settlement systems, trade finance, supply chain management, asset registration, identity management (including for anti-money laundering and know your client purposes) and corporate governance.

As financial institutions, governments and companies move from research and development to deployment of these transformative technologies, they need to consider carefully the potential legal and regulatory implications and risks.

To help our clients stay up-to-date with the latest developments and trends, we have created a FinTech hub as part of our NRF Institute, consolidating insights, publications, blog posts and events from our global FinTech team.

Register for the hub

To access to our FinTech hub please register to join the NRF Institute. The FinTech hub can be found in the "Knowledge hubs" dropdown menu.

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Members of the NRF Institute can access a range of premium content including knowledge hubs and cross-border guides.



Contacts

Nick Abrahams
Nick Abrahams
Global Co-leader, Digital Transformation Practice
Email
nick.abrahams@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +61 2 9330 8312
Andrew James Lom
Andrew James Lom
US Head of Financial Services and Global Head of Private Wealth
Email
andrew.lom@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +1 212 318 3119
Sean Murphy
Sean Murphy
Global head of FinTech
Email
sean.murphy@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +44 (20) 74445039
Etelka Bogardi
Etelka Bogardi
Asia Head of FinTech and Financial Services Regulatory; Partner
Email
etelka.bogardi@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +65 63095455
Ronald David Smith
Ronald David Smith
Senior Counsel
Email
ron.smith@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +1 214 855 8349
Frank Henkel
Frank Henkel
Partner
Email
frank.henkel@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +49 (89) 212148456
Desiree Reddy
Desiree Reddy
Director
Email
desiree.reddy@nortonrosefulbright.com
T: +27 11 685 8673

Industry:

Practice areas:

FinTech publications

List of pages

Cryptocurrencies are property capable of being held on trust, New Zealand High Court holds

In Ruscoe v Cryptopia Ltd (in Liquidation) [2020] NZHC 728 the New Zealand High Court held that cryptocurrencies, as digital assets, are a form of property that are capable of being held on trust.

Ch 7: Blockchain disputes

Most FinTech disputes have, to date, concerned breach of contract, fraud or insolvency in connection with cryptocurrencies.

Ch 6: ICOs

ICOs have proven to be an innovative method of raising funds outside of the traditional sphere of venture capital, angel and seed funding.

Ch 5: Identity use cases and privacy implications

As interest and investment in blockchain and DLT continues to grow, many businesses and governments are considering how this technology can be used.

Legal analysis of the governed blockchain

The form of blockchain governance must not raise new intractable issues.

Ch. 4: Digitizing the energy value chain

The use of DLT in the energy value chain could lead to a fundamental change in how parties share data and transact, and may even alter market structures.

Blockchain: A chain reaction

Blockchain will change the way in which real estate transactions are undertaken across the world.

Welcome to the future: blockchain and the sharing economy

Our technology lawyers have developed a roadmap to clearly depict blockchain alternatives.

Ch. 3: Using the intellectual property rights to protect distributed ledger technology

While a significant amount of time is now being spent by businesses on analyzing the various legal and regulatory issues impacting upon the DLT space, many businesses have not yet considered strategies ...

Ch. 2: Digitizing the insurance value chain

Blockchains and DLT will potentially revolutionize the insurance market.

InsurTech: where are we now?

The disruptive impact of low-cost base, customer-facing FinTech companies.

Blockchain: competition issues in nascent markets

In this briefing, we look at the possible competition law issues that blockchain raises.

Can smart contracts be legally binding?

R3 joins us to forge a consensus between industry stakeholders, lawyers and technologists.

The future of smart contracts in insurance

What are the key commercial, legal and regulatory issues which innovators of smart contracts and blockchain technologies will have to consider as they move from proof-of-concept trials to commercially viable products which can be profitably commoditized.

Ch. 1: Unlocking the blockchain: a legal and regulatory guide

Explore the regulatory and legal issues that arise with use case deployments.

Smart contacts: coding the fine print, a legal and regulatory guide

The nature of smart contracts and their potential obstacles.

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