Oliver Woodhouse

Oliver is a Partner in the Commercial & Technology team and leads Acuity Law’s Financial Services Regulatory practice, with a particular focus on FinTech, payments, banking, insurance and consumer finance. He plays a central role in the firm’s FinTech sector offering, advising start-ups, scale-ups and established financial institutions on complex regulatory, commercial and strategic matters.

His experience spans both private practice and in-house roles, giving him a highly commercial and pragmatic approach to supporting clients operating in regulated markets. Oliver regularly advises UK and international clients on FCA regulation, payments and e-money, consumer credit, financial crime compliance, embedded finance, insurance distribution, change in control matters and regulatory aspects of M&A transactions.

Oliver has advised e-money institutions, challenger banks, InsurTech businesses, alternative lenders, wealth management firms and international FinTech groups on matters including FCA authorisations and registrations, regulatory due diligence, product launches, financial promotions, outsourcing and supplier arrangements, governance and compliance frameworks, and the design and remediation of financial crime systems and controls.

He is particularly valued for helping fast-growth businesses navigate regulatory complexity while maintaining a strong commercial focus, often acting as an outsourced legal and regulatory adviser to scaling FinTech and financial services businesses.

Expertise

• FCA and PRA authorised firms – banks, lenders, insurers and intermediaries, wealth and investment managers, payment and e-money institutions, and consumer credit/hire providers.
• Appointed representatives and distribution networks operating via a principal firm’s permissions.
• FinTech and digital finance businesses – from early-stage start-ups navigating first regulatory applications to scaling platforms with complex compliance needs.
• Businesses entering or expanding into financial services – like retailers, apps, platforms often embedding finance and insurance products or firms carrying on regulatory activities on an ancillary basis.
• Technology businesses servicing the financial sector, including contracts with regulated firms.
• Buyers and sellers of regulated businesses – advising on regulatory aspects of acquisitions, investments and restructures.
• Individuals in relation to roles, responsibilities and obligations within regulated firms, often holding senior management functions.