Sarah Thompson is a partner in the Financial Regulation practice and is Head of the Financial Regulation Group and the firm’s cross-disciplinary ESG Group.

Sarah has experience in advising a broad range of clients on financial regulation matters and is admitted to practice in Northern Ireland, Ireland and England & Wales. She specialises in Irish, UK and European financial services regulation and advises a broad range of domestic and international financial institutions, including banks, investment firms, asset managers, payment institutions, fintech businesses and other regulated entities.

Sarah’s practice includes advice on Central Bank of Ireland authorisation and licensing processes, regulatory perimeter issues, ongoing compliance with conduct of business and governance requirements, ESG and sustainable finance regulation, the Individual Accountability Framework and Senior Executive Accountability Regime (IAF/SEAR), and financial services M&A. She also advises clients on regulatory change programmes, cross-border regulatory frameworks and supervisory engagement with regulators.

Prior to joining Arthur Cox, Sarah worked in London as a member of the Financial Regulation Group of Linklaters LLP and a partner in the Financial Services Regulatory team of Kirkland & Ellis International LLP.

Relevant Experience

  • Regulatory change and strategy: Advising numerous banks, investment firms, payment services firms, proprietary traders and market infrastructure providers on regulatory reform initiatives including in respect of CRD VI, MiFID II, operational resilience, digital assets regimes and ESG regimes.
  • Cross border and multi regulator frameworks: Advising local and international banks, investment firms, asset managers and financial market infrastructure providers on their regulatory structures and on managing divergent regulatory frameworks across multiple jurisdictions. This includes supporting clients in responding to evolving global legal and compliance frameworks.
  • Contentious and supervisory regulatory matters: Advising clients on regulatory investigations and supervisory engagement.
  • Financial sector corporate and restructuring activity: Advising on group reorganisations of banking and investment firm groups, acquisitions and disposals of regulated businesses (including by private equity sponsors), change of control processes and resolution planning.
  • Governance: Working across the banking and asset management sectors with Boards, non-executive directors and executive management teams, advising on the design of governance structures and systems and controls.