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      FinTech is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the financial market. Advising tech companies offering services to the financial sector, as well as advising entities long present on the financial market but seeking to pursue digital transformation, requires special skills. The lawyers at KPMG Law have experience unique on the Polish and European markets involving establishment and operation of entities on the FinTech market, as well as cooperation between FinTechs and “traditional” banks, including in the Banking-as-a-Service model. Our experience includes dealings with supervisory authorities as well as ongoing expansion of operations and cooperation with other entities on the financial market.

      What is FinTech advisory?

      Advice for entities in the FinTech sector includes licensing procedures and other types of proceedings before supervisory and regulatory authorities (particularly the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF), the Bank Guarantee Fund (BFG), the National Bank of Poland (NBP), and the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK)), adjusting the operations of financial institutions to comply with legal requirements and supervisory guidance, including implementation of EU regulations and directives, as well as various types of transactions, including changes in ownership of FinTech entities.

      This advice also includes preparing and assessing business models to be implemented by FinTechs in cooperation with traditional banks and other financial institutions, as well as assistance in implementation of new financial technologies by banks and other financial institutions.

      Legal challenges for FinTech institutions

      The supervisory regulations governing creation and operation of entities in the FinTech sector are relatively new. This requires special care in interpreting these regulations. The sources of these regulations are largely European legislative bodies. Thus advice in this sector entails the need for analysis of the entire European regulatory environment, including both directives and EU regulations, as well as the positions of bodies at the EU level and acts of “soft law.” The aim of certain foreign entities is to launch operations in several EU/EEA countries, which requires coordination by legal advisors functioning in different European jurisdictions.

      At the same time, new services offered by FinTech entities are often not yet regulated, and their implementation requires an in-depth legal analysis and sometimes also consultation with supervisory authorities.

      Entities operating in the FinTech space hold relevant licences subject to regulatory oversight. Whether their services are innovative or already functioning in other jurisdictions, providers are subject to duties comparable to those of traditional financial institutions, meaning that entities or persons acting for them may be exposed to fines imposed by supervisory authorities.

      Benefits of KPMG Law services for the FinTech sector

      • Determining whether specific services provided in Poland or more broadly in the European Union require a specific permit, and the conditions under which the services may be provided.
      • Assessment of whether services already implemented meet supervisory requirements and the requirements of contract law conditions under which the services may be provided.
      • Avoiding negative consequences of failure to comply with legal and regulatory requirements, in particular severe administrative sanctions.
      • Access to the unique knowledge of experienced banking and finance lawyers with extensive legal expertise but also familiar with the ins and outs of FinTech operations and the business environment.
      • Broad international perspective thanks to KPMG Law’s participation in the global KPMG network.
      • Ability to efficiently combine services of KPMG Law with tax, accounting, financial and transactional advisory from other entities in the KPMG group.

      KPMG Law support in advisory for FinTech entities

      Obtaining and extending licences for operating in the FinTech sector, representation in dealings with supervisory authorities

      • Obtaining licences for banking, payment institutions and electronic money institutions, registration as providers of account information services, and extension of existing licences to cover new services (e.g. payment initiation services and account information services)
      • Representation of clients in reorganizing their operations, including procedures for obtaining licences, filing notifications, etc
      • Representation of clients in proceedings involving imposition of administrative sanctions by supervisory and regulatory authorities
      • Seeking interpretations of FinTech law from the competent authorities

      Modification and extension of licences for operating in the FinTech sector, representation in dealings with supervisory authorities

      • Drafting and advising on internal regulations and contracts with other entities (including outsourcers) for compliance with legal and regulatory requirements
      • Adjusting the operations of financial institutions to comply with EU regulations and directives (including PSD2, EMD2, PAD, AMLD4, AMLD5, CBR, FTR, IFR, Sepa End Date, BRRD, CRR, MiFID, MiFIR, FATCA, MiCA, DORA, UCITS, EMIR, SFTR, AMLD)
      • Drafting documentation for new financial products and services
      • Implementation of services such as virtual IBAN, Banking-as-a-Service, settlement accounts for financial institutions, etc
      • Support in managing risks arising in FinTech operations
      • Preparing opinions and analyses on financial market law, particularly payment regulations 

      Advising on transactions on the FinTech market

      • Conducting ownership changes in FinTech entities, including drafting of the relevant transactional documentation
      • Obtaining required permits for M&A transactions in the FinTech sector

      Other regulatory advice

      • Advice on all regulatory aspects of financial market entities, including FinTechs.
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      About us

      We are a team of lawyers specializing in regulatory advice for financial market institutions and FinTechs. We have a wealth of experience advising clients from all sectors of the financial and FinTech market (banks, investment funds, investment companies, payment institutions, electronic money institutions, banks operating in the Banking-as-a-Service model, unlicensed entities cooperating with licensed entities).

      Thanks to our involvement in the structures of KPMG, our services can be further supported by specialists in tax, finance, accounting and M&A advisory.

      Being part of the global KPMG network provides us a truly international perspective on the regulations and practices governing the operation of financial markets and the FinTech sector. 

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      Our experts

      Adam Stopyra
      Adam Stopyra,

      Partner, Advocate, Co-Head of the KPMG Law in Poland

      KPMG in Poland