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Nikki Johnstone

Partner

Nikki Johnstone is a Fintech and Payments specialist.

She advises bank and non-bank financial institutions, technology companies, marketplaces and cryptoasset firms on the impact of sectoral regulation and intersecting horizontal domestic/regional regimes (including AML/KYC, consumer protection and cross-border marketing).

Leveraging experience from her time in-house at a multi-national technology company, Nikki seeks to provide pragmatic and forward-looking support to clients in navigating product design and international expansion, obtaining licenses and technical consents, drafting customer T&Cs and negotiating partnership or outsourcing agreements. Her perspectives are supported by her regular collaborations with UK and European industry bodies on the shaping of new law and regulation for the Fintech sector.

Expertise

Industries

Experience

Representative matters

  • SBI Group on its investment in Solaris SE, Europe’s pioneer of embedded finance, as part of its Series F3 financing round.
  • Prosus NV on its sale of PayU’s Global Payments Organisation to Rapyd.
  • Broadway Technology, a provider of low-latency execution management solutions, in its sale to Bloomberg L.P.
  • Remitly on the European and UK aspects of its acquisition of Rewire, an Israeli-based financial services platform for migrant workers.
  • Several leading stablecoin issuers on the product design, licensing and operationalisation of new UK stablecoin regulation (and similar international regimes) impacting the distribution of their proprietary fiat-collateralised tokens and related services.

Published Work

  • Contributor, 2023, “Vision for Economic Growth – a roadmap to prosperity”, the City of London Corporation

Speaking Engagements

  • Guest Speaker, Defining New Rules: The future of sanctions in light of the current situation in Ukraine, Tel Aviv Fintech Week, 24/03/2022
  • Guest Speaker, Payments Innovation: How payments architecture and regulation are keeping pace, Tel Aviv Fintech Week, 22/03/2022
  • Guest Speaker, The evolution of personalised consumer experience, FCA Women's Economic Empowerment TechSprint Conference, 11/02/2021
  • Guest Speaker, FinTech Review, Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, 11/02/2021

Recognition

Nikki is a great partner who is forward-thinking and aware of market dynamics.
Chambers UK 2024: Payments Law
A highly trusted partner and ally, as well as having razor-sharp legal expertise and great strength and depth in financial regulatory work.
Chambers 2023 (Fintech Legal)

Qualifications

Admissions

Admitted as a Solicitor (England and Wales), 2010

Academic

LLB (Hons), King's College London, 2007
Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.