Johannesburg, 12 Dec 2022
Webber Wentzel is proud to have been singled out by Chambers Legal as a “Band 1” firm in fintech legal advice, with two of its partners, Christoff Pienaar and Dawid de Villiers, ranked in Band 1 and Band 2 respectively. The firm is the only South African entity ranked in Band 1 for fintech this year.
Chambers Legal ranks firms and individuals on a scale of one to six, based on the excellence of their technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial astuteness, diligence, commitment and other qualities highly valued by clients. All six rankings are highly coveted.
“We are proud and delighted to have been recognised again by Chambers Legal for outstanding work,” said Webber Wentzel senior partner Christo Els. “This is the outcome of many hours of hard and diligent work for our clients by all members of our fintech team.
“These rankings are particularly relevant at a time when South Africa is becoming known for its innovation in fintech products and both domestic and global legislation affecting the sector is rapidly evolving,” he said.
Webber Wentzel has become a “one-stop shop” for fintech businesses because it combines strong sector knowledge and specialist expertise with established relationships with regulators, banks, insurers, funds and infrastructure and service providers, as well as connections to the sub-Saharan African technology start-up community. The fintech team is well known for its ability to assist a wide range of clients, from blue chip companies to start-ups, in both local and international jurisdictions.
De Villiers and Pienaar are co-heads of the Webber Wentzel fintech team, with Pienaar having joined the firm in April 2022 from CDH, where he was a director and head of its Telecommunications Media and Technology (TMT) Practice, as well as sector head for financial institutions, financial services and fintech.
De Villiers, who specialises in all aspects of financial services law, can advise on laws and regulations related to banking, stock exchange and securities, money laundering and anti-corruption, mutual funds and collective investment schemes, asset management and securities lending. He has been named by Legal 500 2021 as a legal expert and was a ranked lawyer in Chambers Global 2022 as well as in Chambers Fintech.
Pienaar is dual-qualified in South Africa and England and Wales. He leads work on a range of fintech matters, with a focus on technology, commercial and intellectual property law. He has particular expertise in advising on the implementation of payment systems/products, acquisitions, software development and licensing, commercial JV arrangements, cloud-based arrangements, commercialising of intellectual property, agency and distribution agreements, technology transfers and general commercial contracts in the fintech sector.
He has also advised investors in fintech businesses and intellectual property owners on transactions involving the offshoring of their intellectual property assets.
Pienaar was named by Best Lawyers 2019-2023 as a leading individual: Lawyer of the Year for Information Technology Law 2023 and was named by Chambers Global in 2018-2022 as a ranked lawyer.
Click here to see the Chambers Legal rankings.
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