Taylor Wessing has advised UK digital wealth management startup Nutmeg on its latest funding round, the biggest fintech fund raise since the Brexit vote.
Nutmeg raised £30m from Hong Kong financial advisory firm Convoy, bringing the fintech company’s total fundraising to almost £60m.
The firm has acted for Nutmeg since its launch in 2012, advising on funding rounds from Schroders and Balderton Capital. Taylor Wessing corporate technology partner Howard Palmer advised on the funding, with specialist advice from the firm’s head of financial services regulatory group Jonathan Rogers and partner Graham Hann.
Palmer said: ‘We are delighted for Nutmeg on the outcome of this investment, which will further position them as an ambitious and innovative player in the competitive wealth management industry.’
Nutmeg offers a digital wealth management system that allows investments of as little as £500. The startup currently manages around £500m worth of investments for more than 20,000 customers.
In recent years, Taylor Wessing has positioned itself as a leading UK fintech and startup legal adviser, with an office in London’s Tech City and an office in Cambridge.
The firm counts UK startups such as Citymapper among its clients, and added corporate technology partner Angus Miln in March this year from Bird & Bird, who acts for clients such as retail startup Farfetch.
Other firms are eyeing the fintech and startup market, with Simmons & Simmons launching a £100,000 fund to back fintech stars with free legal advice in March this year under partner Angus McLean. The firm has offered free advice to investment platform Alterest Investment Technologies, hourly car-insurance company Cuvva, banking platform RailBank and invoicing firm Tallysticks.
The UK fintech industry is now worth more than £20bn, while UK companies Funding Circle and Transferwise have both achieved £1bn valuation, or ‘unicorn’ status.
matthew.field@legalease.co.uk
To read more on the UK’s growing fintech sector, see ‘Comment: UK’s fintech boom is set to dazzle but advisers are still struggling to respond’
To read more on Taylor Wessing see: ‘No more Taylor Who? Flair and a bit of vision take Taylor Wessing to next step but what now?’
