What are the most significant cases, projects, or transactions that you and your legal team have recently been involved in?
Over the past 12 months, my most significant project has been leading the Legal Workstream for the application for a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorisation under the European Market in Crypto-Assets Regulation. Building and leading a team of six lawyers worldwide, I established a subsidiary in Austria, navigated a complex regulatory process, and secured approval as the first Swiss crypto bank to obtain a European CASP licence through its EU entity, while preparing for operational launch. In parallel, the AMINA Group legal team has driven key regulatory initiatives across multiple jurisdictions, including a Payment Service Provider application in Austria, registration under the Berne Financial Services Agreement in the UK, the launch of our UK crypto offering under the Section 21 regime and the uplift of our Hong Kong license. Furthermore, we supported the rollout of new products and services across the AMINA Group, ensuring regulatory alignment while enabling commercial growth.
How do you approach managing legal aspects during periods of instability or crisis to ensure the organisation’s resilience?
Regulation in the financial industry is changing rapidly and becoming increasingly complex. It is essential to keep a close eye on regulatory developments, assess their impact on business plans, and develop solutions that are efficient, sustainable, legally sound and business oriented. In crisis situations, it is crucial to gain an accurate overview of the relevant facts asap, assemble a team of cross-functional specialists and jointly develop an appropriate, holistic and flexibly adaptable strategy to solve the problems at hand.
General counsel often speak of the need to be strategic to reach the pinnacle of the profession. What does being strategic mean to you?
To me, strategic legal leadership has three dimensions. First, it requires efficient resource management by determining which capabilities should remain in-house, what can be outsourced, and how technology, automation, self-service tools, and AI can improve efficiency. This allows legal teams to focus on high-value projects, innovation, and the management of high-risk tasks. Second, legal teams must balance risk mitigation with commercial objectives. The goal is to act as a trusted business partner that develops compliant solutions, supports innovation, and engages early in product and service development. By aligning legal priorities with business goals, Legal can help unlock growth opportunities and improve organisational effectiveness. Third, strategy involves anticipating future legal, regulatory, and reputational risks before they materialise. Establishing a robust governance framework ensures the organisation remains resilient and protects long-term value, instead of just reacting to crisis situations.
What is the greatest innovation you have enacted in the past year?
My most significant innovation over the past year was introducing an AI-powered legal research tool and initiating/overseeing the procurement process for an AI-based contract management platform to enhance efficiency, consistency, and scalability within the legal function.