Simon Hart
Partner, Financial Services Sector Lead
London
Overview
Expert legal advice meeting your financial services needs. We support corporates, insolvency office holders, financial institutions, fintechs, insurers, asset managers, private equity firms, payment service providers and others with financial regulation, disputes, investigations, transactions and more.
Whatever your role in the financial markets, providing agile, innovative, and commercially aware advice, we navigate for you the complexities of an ever-evolving financial services landscape. Our team partners closely with our clients, delivering strategic solutions tailored to specific needs.
Our financial services specialists offer deep sector knowledge combined with market-leading expertise in their chosen services, providing pragmatic advice on regulatory compliance, transactional support, dispute resolution, and emerging technology adoption. We appreciate the unique challenges our clients face, from complex regulatory landscapes, increasing litigation risk to disruptive innovation, and deliver clear, practical, and forward-thinking advice.
Whether advising on intricate regulatory issues, supporting private equity clients on transformative investments, guiding fintech companies through rapid growth and funding rounds, helping clients with financial markets related disputes or assisting payment service providers in navigating compliance and digital transformation, we approach every matter with dedication, insight, and a commitment to delivering results.
Our integrated approach brings together experts across disciplines, ensuring that clients receive seamless, comprehensive advice aligned with their commercial objectives. We enable our clients operating in the financial services sector to thrive and succeed in a dynamic global marketplace.
How we help
Banking & Finance
Navigating a complex and evolving financial landscape requires legal advice that is not only technically sound, but also commercially grounded.
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Digital Assets & Blockchain
Deep technical knowledge of the sector and the technology powering it, with vast experience of how best to navigate the commercial and legal issues.
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Fintech
Helping fintech innovators - from fast-growth start-ups to major global platforms—bring their ideas to market, scale their operations, and manage risk in an increasingly regulated environment.
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Private Equity
Private equity is fast-paced, competitive and high-stakes. Our clients tell us they value not just our legal expertise, but also our commercial mindset, deep sector knowledge and close working relationships that help get deals done.
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Team
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Defending a complex cross-border bond dispute
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The team is very thorough in understanding the business, needs and requirements of their clients. They take their time to get to know the client and to tailor their services accordingly.
RPC enjoys a prominent reputation for the quality of its representation of individuals, investors and other claimants bringing cases against major banks and financial institutions.
RPC has the flexibility to take on interesting cases but also the sophistication and commercial credibility to take on some of the most difficult opponents.
FAQs
What areas of financial services regulation does RPC advise on?
We help clients navigate the evolving regulatory landscape across banking, asset management, fintech, payment services, pensions, and insurance. Our experts - some with former regulator or in‑house experience - advise on FCA/PRA enforcement, consumer duty, AML rules, SMCR, AI governance, operational resilience and digital asset regulation.
How does RPC support fintech and digital asset firms?
We guide fintechs and digital-asset firms from early-stage structuring, licensing and funding through scaling. Our team has deep sector knowledge and technical insight, supporting regulatory approval, strategic alliances, token and tokenomics design, crypto compliance and policy engagement across multiple jurisdictions.
What kinds of disputes and investigations can RPC support in financial services?
Our team handles a wide range of contentious issues: FCA investigations, Financial Ombudsman Service claims, professional negligence, cross-border bond and investment disputes, fraud and compliance-related litigation. We provide crisis services (e.g. dawn raids and ReAssure) with 24/7 access to specialist lawyers.
Why is regulatory compliance so critical in financial services?
With regulators taking an increasingly proactive stance on issues such as consumer protection, AML, sanctions, and conduct, the cost of getting it wrong has never been higher. We combine regulatory know-how with sector insight to guide firms through compliance programmes, investigations and enforcement action.
How is technology reshaping financial services?
The rise of AI, blockchain, digital assets, and open banking is disrupting traditional models, creating both opportunity and regulatory complexity. Our team advises fintechs and established institutions alike on regulatory compliance, innovation strategy and disputes - helping clients harness technology while managing the associated risks.
Why appoint RPC for financial markets disputes?
We are one of the few law firms which has significant financial markets disputes experience and does not act for investment banks so are frequently conflict free to handle major disputes against investment banks.
How does RPC handle cross-border financial matters?
As well as having offices in Hong Kong and Singapore, the firm has close relationships with law firms in all major global financial centres.
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