Well-regarded for its payments, capital markets, financial services, and transactional practices, Mayer Brown fields a strong team with a ‘wealth of knowledge’. In Washington DC, David Beam is lauded as a ’go-to payments expert’, bringing extensive experience in credit products and specializing in digital payment regulatory matters, including licensing and product structuring. Operating out of New York, Joseph Castelluccio advises on digital assets and crypto-related corporate and business transactions and is noted for bringing ‘tons of experience’ across jurisdictions on regulatory issues, while Anna Pinedo is a leader within the capital markets and structured finance practices, regularly representing issuers and investment banks in financing transactions and advising on structured products and derivatives matters. In Chicago, Joe Pennell focuses on digital transformation and outsourced services transactions, notably with respect to customer-facing payment and lending digital platforms, and in Washington DC, Eric Mitzenmacher provides regulatory compliance advice, particularly within the payments and lending sectors. The arrival of partners Kimberly Hamm and Jennifer Zepralka, both formerly in government roles, further bolsters the team’s regulatory expertise.
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Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
‘The team consists of regulatory lawyers, former regulators, and transaction lawyers so that it covers a wide range of fintech matters. ’
‘Joseph Castelluccio is responsive, has great commercial awareness, and expertly organizes an appropriate team for each fintech matter. ’
‘David Beam is a genuine partner to the business - very knowledgable and commercial and a pleasure to deal with. He is a go-to Payments expert.’
‘They are super responsive ’
‘Alex Lakatos is always very responsive & helpful’
‘Mayer Brown has a fantastic strength in navigating the often-complex regulatory landscape of the financial industry. With a wealth of knowledge about financial regulations and a solid history of supporting banks and financial institutions, the firm is well-equipped to meet the needs of modern fintech companies.’
‘By combining legal expertise with a keen understanding of emerging technologies, Mayer Brown offers tailored advice that helps fintechs innovate confidently while staying in line with domestic and international laws. This friendly and collaborative approach enables clients to tackle important issues like data privacy, cybersecurity, and intellectual property, all while fostering growth and minimizing legal risks in a fast-paced industry.’
‘Joseph Castelluccio is a rising star within the fintech legal market. His friendly and collaborative approach attracts many traditional and emerging fintech companies. He also has tons of experience in multijurisdictional regulation matters and cross-border deals. ’
Key clients
- Block
- Blockchain and Digital Assets Holding Company
- BNY Mellon
- Guggenheim Partners
- First Citizens Bank
- Keefe Bruyette & Woods (“KBW”) as placement agent and financial adviser to Bakkt Holdings, Inc.
- Pipe Technologies
- Procore Technologies, Inc.
Work highlights
Advise Block on a broad range of issues in connection with Cash App, including on a variety of regulations, and represent Block in connection with the development and deployment of its Borrow product, a small-dollar lending solution in the Cash App suite of services.
Represented Värde Partners in connection with a recapitalization transaction for Mercury Financial Holdings LLC.
Represent and advise First Citizens on the complex process of integrating SVB into it. This began with a top-to-bottom review of SVB’s broad range of accounts and other services to support and power fintech platforms.
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Next generation partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Rohith George
Practice head
David Beam; Joe Castelluccio; Nina Flax; Julie Gillespie; Reg Goeke; Steven Kaplan; Brad Peterson
Other key lawyers
Joe Pennell; Eric Mitzenmacher; Alex Lakatos