Global Legal Insights - Fintech 2021 (3 ed)

Welcome to the 2021 Edition of Global Legal Insights - Fintech. Latham & Watkins LLP is delighted to serve as contributing editors for this edition, which hopefully will provide some helpful clarity on this fast-evolving area of the law. "Fintech" has become a catch-all term used to refer to a varied array of products and services, and regardless of how one might define it, fintech is certainly having an ever-increasing impact on the way we live our lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly influenced the fintech landscape, rapidly accelerating the mainstream acceptance of contactless payment methods (and corresponding shift away from cash), and further underscoring the importance of e-commerce for all types of businesses. The digital asset space continues to evolve at a lightning pace; while Bitcoin and Ethereum remain the most popular cryptocurrencies, a multitude of others continue to enter the market, including central bank-issued digital currencies ("CBDC") and other stablecoins. In addition, non-fungible tokens ("NFTs") have drawn great interest and gained tremendous traction in the markets.

Special-purpose acquisition companies ("SPACs") have allowed earlier stage fintech companies to enter the public market on tighter timelines and budgets, providing companies with greater opportunities to attract additional capital to further develop their products and services. Further, increased focus on the industry from retail investors (as buyers and traders of NFTs or cryptocurrency, stockholders of newly public fintech companies) brings regulatory scrutiny, but also attracts additional market participants and thus greater competition - we look forward to fintech's next phase.