Stuart specialises in helping firms to obtain authorisation, vary their permissions or to seek approval for changes in control. In addition, Stuart has a wealth of experience in undertaking compliance reviews and advising firms from across the asset management industry on complex areas of regulation.
Stuart has 25 years of experience in financial services compliance. During this time he has helped hundreds of firms to obtain authorisation, vary their permissions, obtain approval for changes in control and establish and enhance their governance and control functions to meet evolving regulatory expectations. Stuart also assists firms by overseeing their compliance arrangements, conducting compliance audits and performing internal compliance monitoring.
At any one time, Stuart is working on a number of regulatory transactions such as authorisations, reviewing firms’ compliance arrangements or performing internal compliance monitoring.
Stuart obtained a Master’s degree in Corporate and Commercial Law from Queen Mary College, London, in 1992 and qualified as a solicitor in 1996. During his career, Stuart has been responsible for:
- the first authorisation in the UK for a crowdfunding firm
- the authorisation of an innovative platform for the wholesale market for the purchase and sale of illiquid investments
- advising on the authorisation of a market-leading renewable energy investment firm
- advising on the authorisation for two FCA specified benchmarks
- advising two of the market leaders in the social finance market on their regulatory requirements
- acting as interim compliance officer for several international asset managers
- advising numerous firms on the impact of AIFMD, MiFID II and the Senior Managers and Certification Regime.
Stuart is currently helping firms to prepare for the forthcoming FCA Consumer Duty Regime and the financial promotion rules for high risk investments.
