Richard Frase

Richard Frase advises on all aspects of financial services law. He has extensive experience of the legal and regulatory aspects of the UK financial services industry, gained in private practice, in-house and with the regulators, covering both wholesale and retail markets and including regulation and compliance, derivatives and trading documentations.

His recent experience includes advisory and structuring work including global business models, outsourcing and cross-border compliance, investigations and dispute resolution for international asset management businesses.

Mr. Frase was head of litigation at the Personal Investment Authority (later the Financial Services Authority and now the Financial Conduct Authority) from 1995-1998, where he dealt with a range of compliance and enforcement matters involving life companies and financial advisers. He was seconded to the Securities and Futures Authority during 1989-1991, where he advised on policy and legal matters, and carried out extensive work on the conduct of business rules.

Mr. Frase has been listed for financial services (non-contentious/regulatory) by The Legal 500 UK. Clients noted "he has an unparalleled knowledge and deep understanding of the intricacies of financial legislation and regulation” and "is an extremely knowledgeable and hard-working lawyer. He is an incredibly impressive individual."

He qualified in 1981, and subsequently became a partner in a leading law firm’s corporate department from 1988 to 1992. He left the then Financial Services Authority to join Dechert in 1998.

His published legal textbooks include Sweet & Maxwell’s Law and Regulation of Investment Management (3rd edition 2019) and Hedge Funds and the Law (3rd edition 2021).