Lucy Frew

Lucy Frew

Partner

T +1 345 814 4676
M +1 345 939 4676

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Lucy Frew is a partner based in Walkers' Cayman Islands office and heads the Global Regulatory & Risk Advisory Group. She joined in 2016 and brings more than 20 years' experience as a specialist financial regulatory and risk management lawyer. As well as having advised financial institutions in private practice in international law firms in London since 2001 (prior to which she practised as a barrister) Lucy also has in-house experience as legal counsel at a global bank and in the Enforcement Division at the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom.

Lucy's clients are financial institutions across the international and domestic spectrum, including a range of banks, investment funds, administrators, investment managers, advisers, broker-dealers, exchanges and insurance sector clients. She has also advised extensively on fintech and virtual assets since 2013.

Lucy and her team assist clients with all aspects of financial regulation and risk management, ranging from highly complex legal advice on every aspect of financial regulation to day to day practical implementation of compliance frameworks, including preparation of policies and procedures and provision of training. The team advises on contentious, as well as advisory, matters. These include inspections and investigations, regulatory audits, remediation, compliance training, minimising regulatory and litigation risk and public relations issues, as well as AML, sanctions, asset freezes, tax transparency, data protection (including breaches), corporate governance and cross-border marketing.

Most of Lucy’s matters have a cross-border element and she frequently advises clients on the regulatory impact offshore of international regulatory and tax related initiatives of the FATF, OECD and EU.

Throughout Lucy's career she has assisted clients with putting regulatory policies, procedures and compliance monitoring programmes in place, as well as advising on the regulatory aspects of transactional documentations and service provider agreements. She has a long track record of assisting clients with contentious financial regulatory matters and investigations and handling relationships with regulators.

Prior to joining Walkers, Lucy headed the financial regulatory practice at her former firm in London. As well as having advised financial institutions in private practice in international law firms in London since 2001, she also has in-house experience as legal counsel at UBS and was seconded to the UK Financial Conduct Authority. Lucy gained significant experience as a litigator in heavyweight cases for financial institutions before specialising in financial regulation and, prior to 2001, she practised as a barrister.

Admitted In:
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
England and Wales

Qualifications:
LLB (Hons) in Law, King's College, University of London, UK
Called to the Bar November 1998, Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, UK
Bar Vocational Course, Inns of Court School of Law, UK
Admitted to the Roll of Solicitors, UK

2023 Chambers Global - Spotlight Table - Financial Services: Regulatory

2023 Legal 500 - Leading Individual - Regulatory & Compliance

2022 Chambers Global - Notable Practitioner - Financial Services: Regulatory

2022 Legal 500 - Leading Individual - Regulatory & Compliance  - Her 'timeliness and responsiveness is particularly notable.’

2022 Who's Who Legal - Recommended Lawyer - Private Funds: "At Walkers, Lucy Frew is a go-to lawyer for domestic and international financial institutions engaged in private funds, fintech and virtual assets."

2021 Legal 500 - Leading Individual - Regulatory & Compliance

2021 Legal 500 - Recommended Lawyer - Investment Funds - 'Great knowledge about complex topics and ability to boil down to current situation and related remediation.

2020 Legal 500 - Recommended Lawyer - Insurance/Reinsurance

2021 Who's Who Legal - Recommended Lawyer - Private Funds: "Lucy Frew with Walkers has amassed more than 20 years of financial regulatory experience and is revered among domestic and international banks, investment funds and managers."

2019 Who's Who Legal - Recommended Lawyer - Private Funds

2018 Who's Who Legal - Thought Leader - Private Funds: Regulatory - "Lucy Frew at Walkers is recognised for her 'huge amount of regulatory and compliance experience'. One respondent says, 'She is knowledgeable and experienced in the funds area, I would have no hesitation in referring work to her or recommending her'.”

2018 Legal 500 - Recommended Lawyer - Banking, Finance & Capital Markets

2018 Legal 500 - Recommended Lawyer - Corporate & Commercial​

Lucy serves on many boards and committees with a focus on regulation, risk management, corporate governance, beneficial ownership, remuneration, financial crime and cyberattack prevention, data protection, international transparency, investment funds, FinTech and Cayman Finance's Innovation Lab. She has been particularly active in many industry working groups in relation to market ethics guidance, AIFMD, MiFID II/MiFIR and MAR, including AIMA and Cayman Finance.

Lucy currently sits on:

  • AIMA Digital Assets Working Group
  • AIMA Executive Committee and Co-Head of AIMA Legal & Regulatory Committee
  • Beneficial Ownership Communication and PR Working Group
  • Capital Markets Committee
  • Cayman Finance Legislative and Regulatory Committee
  • Consulting Editorial Board of Lexis Nexis Financial Service
  • Digital AML/KYC Committee (formerly FinTech Global KYC Standards Working Group)
  • Digital Funding and Investing Committee
  • Innovation Lab (formerly FinTech Innovation Lab WG)
  • International Transparency Committee (Beneficial Ownership)
  • Investment Funds – Funds Legislative Working Group
  • Investment Funds – Funds Regulatory Working Group
  • LRC AML/CFT Working Group
  • LRC Data Protection Working Group
  • Smart FinTech Regulations Committee

In addition, Lucy regularly writes a column for PLC and is also a member of 100 Women in Finance. 

Lucy completed a term of just under four years as an elected member of the City of London Corporation, which runs the City of London financial district and promotes the financial industry.

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