Global law firm Ashurst announces the appointment of Narelle Smythe as a partner in its Financial Regulation practice in Sydney.
Ashurst is already ranked as a leading firm in Financial Regulation in Australia, having been recognised by Chambers with a Band 1 ranking for many years. The appointment of Narelle reflects Ashurst's commitment to leading the market in this area.
With three decades of experience in financial services regulation, Narelle is widely recognised as a leader in the field. She has advised both domestic and international financial services providers on regulatory compliance, investigations and enforcement proceedings and M&A transactions in the financial sector.
Narelle's experience extends to financial services, credit, privacy, anti-money laundering, fraud, bribery and corruption. She has overseen complex, large-scale, multi-faceted investigations, devised effective remediation programs, and managed the regulatory issues arising on financial services projects and corporate transactions.
With a client base encompassing the leading banks, BNPL providers, other financiers, payment service providers and technology companies, Narelle has acted on many regulatory firsts. She is a longstanding advisor to the Reserve Bank, which she has advised on payment systems reform for almost 20 years.
Narelle began her career at Clayton Utz and served as a partner from 2000 to 2021.
Her arrival at Ashurst will consolidate the firm's dominance in financial regulation and she will join Phil Trinca (Melbourne) and Hong-Viet Nguyen (Sydney) in servicing the payments and consumer credit segment of the market.
Jonathan Gordon, Global Head of Financial Regulation, commented:
"We are excited to welcome Narelle to Ashurst. Narelle is one of the most highly respected lawyers in financial services regulation and her arrival will bolster Ashurst's already strong offering to clients. Throughout her impressive career, Narelle has built a reputation as a trusted adviser to some of the largest banking, regulatory and corporate clients in Australia. Her appointment underscores Ashurst's investment in the Financial Regulation practice and we are unquestionably the leading team in Australia in this area. Together with our fast-growing Risk Advisory consulting division, where we can deliver legal-led consulting solutions, our team offers a level of service to clients that is quite simply unrivalled across the market."
Jamie Ng, Global Co-Head of Finance, Funds & Restructuring, added:
"We are thrilled that Narelle has joined Ashurst's Australian Financial Regulation practice. She is a talented leader who will help strengthen the firm's market-leading service offering to clients in the payments and consumer credit space. Her arrival demonstrates Ashurst's intention to continue to grow our strong Financial Regulation practice across the globe. We have recently added new partners in London, Germany, Singapore and Australia and will continue to invest in this field to ensure we provide the best possible service to clients."
Narelle said:
"I am delighted to join Ashurst and look forward to working with the firm's highly-regarded team across financial regulation, corporate transactions and dispute resolution. I am also really looking forward to working with the Ashurst Risk Advisory consulting business, and bring new regulatory solutions to our clients. Ashurst's Financial Regulation practice is the strongest and deepest practice in the market and I am excited by the opportunity to help consolidate its reputation as the go-to firm for clients across the sector."
