FinTech Report 2020

FinTech Report 2020 – 2020 is the year of COVID-19 and its effect has been significant on people, business and legal issues (I say no more on that since so many others have already said it all). But 2020 has so far, for those who act within the fintech sector, also been the year of nationalism, cybersecurity and more regulatory burden than ever – all of which require great skills of the business facilitators to make necessary deals come through.

We have the pleasure to present yet another issue of Setterwalls’ FinTech Report in which members of the Setterwalls FinTech team comment on topics in relation to the different areas of the sector.

Even though it has been a tough start for entrepreneurs as well for the fintech sector as a whole in 2020, things are moving forward but at a different pace and yet there is much to expect for the future when things go back to normal. Not only have we seen the Central Bank of Sweden (Sveriges Riksbank) initiate a pilot of a potential issue of e-currency (the e-krona) but also nations and companies have started building walls and protections against unwanted partners/investors (i.e. restrictions for Huawei) plus that the burden of getting the deal done and all aspects to consider have never been more challenging. The latter has been far from easy for companies striving for better services and values, yet tomorrow is another day and those who are well prepared and have done their homework will overcome barriers and competition (and even Covid-19) in the end.

In light of this, our FinTech Report 2020 has this year focused on things that we believe are  ”hot” and interesting to share from a legal point of view in a post COVID-19 era. Thus, we hope you enjoy the following articles:

• Finding the right partner in times when cyber security threats and protectionism/national security is on the agenda – a matter for companies to prioritise
• Virtual- and cryptocurrency – A guide to identify whether your business may be subject to anti-money laundering regulation
• Five steps to facilitate service contract negotiations with the banks (and other large financial actors) – how to prepare for an optimal process
• Oops, do we really need a SFSA license?
• Fair treatment of customers in financial services in the new technology era

In addition, we will after the summer publish an article on the new EBA guidelines coming into force this summer, which further affects IT outsourcing in the financial sector. Stay tuned!

Last but not least, we want to give you a heads up to save the date for our next Setterwalls FinTech Forum on 19 November 2020, Sturegatan 10, in Stockholm. Depending on the situation at the time, the Fintech forum may take place both physically or electronically or both – in either case, put it in your calendar!

We hope you enjoy the Setterwalls FinTech Report 2020 and we look forward to seeing you at the Setterwalls FinTech Forum this fall.

Yours sincerely,
Joacim Johannesson
Partner, and Head of Setterwalls’ FinTech team