Payments & Fintech

PAYMENT & FINTECH 

Financial technology, or “FinTech”, has changed the way the world considers finances. McMillan’s payments and money services lawyers have the experience, technical expertise and industry knowledge to help clients gain competitive advantage among emerging opportunities while navigating the risks FinTech brings. We have deep regulatory and transactional experience in all parts of Canada’s financial services industry, in regulatory oversight and in public policy.

In a rapidly evolving industry, our lawyers have gained significant FinTech experience advising institutional lenders, tech companies and regulators on a wide array of FinTech matters including cryptocurrencies (such as bitcoin), the payments ecosystem and peer to peer payment systems, mobile payments and deposits, virtual wallets, online lending, trading and investments and financial planning “Robo-advisors”. We also negotiate on behalf of clients the complex intersection of cybersecurity, data privacy, banking and securities regulatory compliance, consumer protection and other regulatory and transactional requirements.

CRYPTOCURRENCY AND BLOCKCHAIN

At McMillan, our cryptocurrency and blockchain practice encompasses a comprehensive understanding of the existing compliance requirements for cryptocurrency, digital assets and blockchain-based businesses. We use an integrative, pragmatic, and proactive approach when providing counsel in this ever-changing regulatory landscape through our participation in, and support of, regulatory hackathons, FinTech, as well as technology associations in Canada’s major business centers.

Given its multifaceted nature, a cryptocurrency or blockchain-based business requires a well-rounded approach to fulfilling business, legal and regulatory compliance goals. As such, our team includes specialists in a wide variety of fields such as tax, capital markets/securities, mergers and acquisitions, technology, privacy and cybersecurity, intellectual property, consumer protection, anti-money laundering and litigation.

Our lawyers also advise issuers and dealers with respect to initial coin or token offerings (ICOs and ITOs); CSA Sandbox Applications; advise blockchain-based platforms which are designed to issue cryptocurrency by participating members; advise cryptocurrency exchanges on terms of service, privacy policy, and securities compliance; and negotiate on behalf of clients the complex intersection of cybersecurity, data privacy, banking and securities regulatory compliance, consumer protection and other regulatory and transactional requirements.

PAYMENTS & MONEY SERVICES

McMillan’s payments, money and financial services lawyers specialize in helping corporate clients navigate this dynamic payments industry. Our practice draws on the firm’s expertise across a wide variety of practice areas to provide our clients with a unique perspective on the Canadian and international payments ecosystem.

McMillan’s payments practice regularly advises merchants, payments processors, card companies (payment network providers), digital payments companies, regulators, industry groups, technology providers, cross-border payments facilitators and payment clearing and settlement providers. Our payments, money and financial services lawyers offer expertise on anti-money laundering and economic sanctions, regulatory compliance, financial services, consumer protection, privacy and data protection, and information technology. We combine industry knowledge with a deep understanding of payment and financial market infrastructures to provide a full range of services to clients in the payments, funds transfer, foreign exchange, virtual currency and Paytech sectors.

Our lawyers have negotiated with regulators and various parties in the Canadian payments system, including the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions and Payments Canada, to clear the regulatory hurdles associated with bringing an innovative payment functionality to the Canadian marketplace.