Partner at CMS UK
Sam is a partner in the Financial Services Regulatory practice at CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP. Sam advises clients including banks, asset management firms, broker-dealers, FinTech businesses, payment institutions and corporate finance houses on a broad range of regulatory and compliance matters within the financial services sector. Prior to working in private practice, Sam worked for seven years at the UK financial services regulator, the Financial Services Authority (the majority of this time in the FSA’s General Counsel’s Division), and has also spent time on secondment at Santander Asset Management UK Limited.
Recent work includes advising on whether certain activities require FCA authorisation, establishing crowdfunding platforms and robot-managers, advising on ICOs and security token offerings, establishing online investment platforms (MTFs and OTFs), advising various crypto-related businesses (such as exchanges, payments firms and other intermediaries), structuring of fund vehicles (including regulated and unregulated funds), financial promotion issues, conduct of business requirements, acquisitions of FCA-authorised firms, drafting terms of business for investment firms and payment service providers.
Sam won an award for the Regulatory Lawyer of the Year at the Thomson Reuters Compliance Awards 2014.
Sam is a ranked lawyer in Chambers 2018 for advising the FinTech industry and states that Sam has “regulatory expertise, which sources praise him for contextualising in a “very commercial” manner.” Chambers 2018 also includes another quote which mentions that “Sam’s great. He’s very sharp but comes across as laid back. I’m always confident he knows what he’s doing since he knows the regulatory framework thoroughly”.
Legal 500 2018 also mentions that “Financial services regulatory expert Sam Robinson is ‘sought out by innovators for being able to navigate mazes by thinking laterally'”.