Cooley LLP

Fintech and Payments

The financial services industry’s relationship with technology has transformed significantly over the past decade, giving rise to a diverse and dynamic fintech industry. Our fintech clients range from high-profile, multibillion-dollar, publicly held companies to emerging startups that are reshaping the payments and lending landscape – and disrupting business practices globally. At Cooley, innovation is in our DNA, and we understand the complex and ever-changing needs of our clients across every stage of the business life cycle.

We help clients navigate the intricate web of operational frameworks and global regulations governing money movement, lending and related services. Our team provides ongoing, tailored support on regulatory compliance and transactional matters – including money transmission and lending licensing, commercial partnerships and intellectual property licensing, IP protection, privacy and data security, and employment – across an eclectic range of products and services. We also counsel through litigation and enforcement as our clients grow, from product idea to corporate formation, through venture and private equity financing, and on to mergers, acquisitions and public offerings.

When our clients are faced with their most pressing matters – whether in an examination, potential enforcement action or litigation – they rely on our team’s comprehensive knowledge of the laws affecting the fintech industry and deep familiarity with the relevant regulatory agencies.

We work seamlessly and collaboratively to bring the best of Cooley’s technology experience to every matter, whether it’s a transaction, a data breach or an internal investigation.

Representative matters

• We represent multiple clients in US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) investigations concerning the way financial institutions market products and services on social media platforms, the information used to target consumers, and data sharing.

• Cooley advised Transact Campus, an innovative campus technology and payment solutions company (and portfolio company of Reverence Capital Partners), on a definitive agreement signed by Reverence Capital Partners to sell Transact to Roper Technologies for $1.6 billion.

• Our team counseled Nium, a global leader in real-time cross-border payments, on its $50 million Series E funding round, bringing its total valuation to $1.4 billion.

• Cooley guided MoonPay, a payment infrastructure provider for crypto companies, on its $555 million Series A financing round, which brought its valuation to $3.4 billion.

• We support leading ecommerce marketplace platforms through every aspect of developing and launching their payments processing capabilities.

• Our team counsels market-leading companies on complex money transmission regulatory compliance and related strategic issues, including product development, money transmission licensing and ongoing maintenance of licenses, examination support, regulatory strategy for transactional matters, change of control approvals, and regulatory inquiries relating to money transmission compliance.

• Cooley guides investors and strategic acquirers on complex payments regulatory and due diligence matters relating to acquisitions of regulated (or potentially regulated) entities, as well as supporting acquiring entities and targets through the change of control process.

• We advise several fintech companies on the CFPB’s increased focus on digital payments.

• Our team represents prominent fintech firms in connection with state regulatory investigations into unlicensed lending, servicing and brokering activities.