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Financial Institutions

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Expertise

Matheson’s "outstanding" team is "dedicated and efficient", and "certainly one of the best".
European Legal 500

Financial institutions are operating in a dynamic and rapidly changing environment. As a consequence of the global financial crisis and more recently Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic, governments and regulators have become much more proactive with a view to improving oversight, regulation and protection of the consumer. As a consequence, the regulatory landscape has fundamentally changed and operations, structure and location of regulated businesses are continuously being adapted in response to these developments.

At Matheson we believe that your professional advisers should give you a commercial advantage in dealing with these changes. We have worked extensively over many years with a broad range of the largest financial institutions, including leading domestic firms and “brand name” multinationals including banks, insurers, investment services as well as Fintech and payment firms.

We continually look to use the breadth and depth of our experience to benefit our clients. In our view, dedicated teams with extensive industry sector knowledge offer the best value for clients.

Our Financial Institutions Group unites lawyers with extensive industry experience, corporate transactional experience and regulatory knowledge who are solely focused on financial institutions.

The key areas of our practice can be broadly summarised as follows:

Central to the success of our team is our excellent relationship with the Central Bank of Ireland.

Thought leadership

Thought leadership is particularly important to the Financial Institutions Group as we believe it is as important to shape public policy as it is to advise on it. We regularly make formal and informal submissions to the Central Bank, Department of Finance and other State bodies. Group members regularly write, speak and organise seminars/webinars on topics that are important to our clients. We consistently update our clients on developments in the area of financial services through our much praised FIG Forum. To subscribe, please click here. 

Collaboration

At Matheson the financial services sector is the largest single sector of our practice. The Financial Institutions Group works with many of Matheson’s market leading teams including teams in Finance and Capital Markets, Asset Management and Investment Funds, Aviation Finance and Transportation, Structured Finance and Securitisation, Tax, Restructuring and Insolvency and Financial Services Litigation.

Our Team

Latest Handbooks and Toolkits
Combining all the relevant legal instruments and Central Bank documents (which together make up the Regime), along with Matheson’s guidance. 

This guide summarises the applicable legal and regulatory requirements and includes practical checklists to test your firms' operational resilience. 

Your go-to resource for understanding your firm's regulatory and legal obligations, including 10 key checklists to use throughout an outsourcing arrangement. 

The AML Toolkit is designed to assist existing and newly impacted clients to navigate the changing AML legislation and its impacts. 
Accolades
"The team is very flexible and approachable, very easy to get in touch with and the lawyers come back quickly with good advice and guidance."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2025

"Lawyers in the group have a great ability to simplify legal matters and clearly explain them to non-legal professionals."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2025

"The team is made up of very commercial, proactive, good negotiators."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2025

"The Matheson team is very experienced, creative and commercial simultaneously."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2025

"Professional, Commercial, In-depth knowledge, practical, efficient and pro-active. Would recommend to use again.” 
Bank lending: Lender side: IFLR1000 2024

“We work with both the regulatory advice team and the transaction team in Banking & Finance in Matheson. The sub-teams in Matheson seem to interact and collaborate well with each other and they have great strength and depth to their practice.”
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2024

"The Matheson team is commercial, and its lawyers are leading practitioners in their market. They know best practices, understand cross-border implications and are very reliable."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2024
 
"The department works well with other teams and knows how to guide others through tricky issues. The lawyers are very solution-oriented, super responsive, very able and articulate. It”s just a really great team."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2024

“They have a wide base of knowledge and experts in different fields that facilitate resolution of legal matters easily.”
Financial Services Regulatory: IFLR1000 2023

“They were very solutions-orientated and worked hard to execute the deal in a very compressed timeframe. “
“Practical and commercial, no long-winded legal waffle. Experienced personable lawyers who work well together and collaborate well with other law firms on multi-jurisdictional transactions“
Bank Lending : IFLR1000 2023 
       
"Matheson is a highly collegiate firm with a strong client-focused ethos. They have impressed me with their approach to client management generally, making clients feel valued. They have wide breadth of talent and expertise."
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2023

"With Matheson the simple things are always done to an exceptional standard. Partner availability and responsiveness were in excess of expectations, while both Partners and Associates demonstrated significant levels of expertise to assist in documenting a complex transaction. They are never afraid to give an opinion and their insight formed a crucial part of our credit process for a particularly challenging transaction. Specific standout individuals referenced include Donal O”Donovan and Finnbahr Boyle."
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2023

"Matheson have the strongest team in Banking & Finance in Ireland. They have experience and depth across all areas and are always able to add value to a transaction."
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2023

"Excellent product / structure knowledge particularly in my sector. Up to speed with all innovations in the market."
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2023

"very strong in developing working relationships with lenders whilst benefiting from a broad client offering and international expertise."
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2023

"The team are very good at breaking down the issues at hand and walking me through the challenges, the options and associated risks of each option."
Banking: IFLR1000 2022

"High level of understanding on the changing regulatory environment. Diligent documentation review. Worked in a very efficient and professional manner with opposing drafting counsel which resulted in a smooth execution."
Banking: IFLR1000 2022

“Exceptionally strong client focus, innovative and broad experience.”
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2022

"easy to work with, super responsive and practical."
"a great balance of legal knowledge and commercial focus,"
Banking & Finance: Chambers Global and Europe 2021

“Strong relationships with their clients and good commercial acumen when drafting transactional documents.”
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2021

“The team stand out for their knowledge of the Irish market and commercial outlook when dealing with banks”
Banking & Finance: The European Legal 500 2020

"Matheson provides expert and commercial practical legal advice to us in all areas, particularly, insolvency, portfolio sales, general banking and real estate. All solicitors whom we deal with are exceptionally responsive, highly reliable and legal experts in their chosen fields. No recognised weaknesses identified in Matheson”s service over the years."
Banking: IFLR1000 2020

"Matheson was highly professional and provided local expertise in distinct area of law pertaining to the rail industry. Conor Blennerhassett was extremely efficient and responsive, given our strict deadlines and timing for response assistance. We also found his expertise to be reliable and concise, considering the budgetary concerns and constrictions we had. I would highlight the firm”s greatest strength to be their thoroughness and quality of their work product combined with their responsive and strong client relationship, which we developed over the course of our project. The firm”s service costs are on the high end, however, that is the norm with any firm of this calibre." 
Banking: IFLR1000 2020