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Hilary Sunghee Seo

Senior Counsel

New York

Seo Hilary Sunghee
Hilary Sunghee Seo

Senior Counsel

New York

Hilary is a Senior Counsel and core member of Allen & Overy’s U.S. Financial Services Regulatory Practice. Her practice focuses on advising domestic and international financial institutions, including securities firms, banks, private wealth management businesses, asset managers, and FinTech and digital asset firms, in assessing the impact of financial regulations on their business activities and strategies and on their regulatory and compliance obligations.

Hilary regularly advises on broker-dealer and OTC derivatives regulatory matters, including on issues relating to registration, licensing, change of control and business expansions; supervision and governance; marketing and distribution issues, particularly as they relate to cross-border activities; the SEC’s and FINRA’s advertising and communication rules; trading and reporting; and on all facets of ongoing compliance matters. She also advises on financial regulatory matters related to cryptocurrency and other digital asset activities.

Prior to joining Allen & Overy, Hilary practiced as a transactional and financial regulatory attorney at leading U.S. law firms. She is a graduate of Harvard University and Columbia Law School.

Other noteworthy experience

Advising:

  • Several financial institutions in seeking and obtaining regulatory approvals in connection with acquisitions or divestitures of asset and wealth management businesses
  • Several financial institutions on SEC and CFTC regulatory issues in connection with their investments in technology and digital assets businesses
  • A global financial services firm on FINRA and SEC regulatory issues in connection with its acquisition of a leading alternative trading system (ATS)
  • Several wealth management firms in connection with the formation of a new broker-dealer and registration with FINRA
  • A leading market maker in connection with its global digital assets initiative
  • A crypto exchange in connection with a new swap/security-based swap business initiative
  • Multiple financial institutions on security-based swap dealer implementation issues, including on the regulations for margin for uncleared swaps and security-based swaps and substituted compliance
  • A global markets infrastructure firm on SEC clearing agency requirements relating to security-based swaps
  • Several non-U.S. private banks and wealth management businesses on a wide range of matters related to the distribution and marketing of wealth management products and services
  • Several financial institutions on regulatory issues in connection with the outsourcing of middle- and back-office functions

Office

New York

1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York
NY 10020

View office →

Qualifications

Professional

Admitted: Bar of the State of New York

Academic

Columbia University School of Law, New York, Juris Doctor

Journal: Columbia Law Review

Harvard University, Economics, magna cum laude

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