Senior Legal Counsel (Regulatory)

The EMEA Legal Counsel will provide strategic legal guidance across KAST's UK, EU and Middle East operations. You will work closely with Product, Compliance and GTM / Business teams to ensure compliance with across UK, EU, and Middle Eastern regulatory frameworks and support KAST's engagement with regulators and industry groups. This role is ideal for a lawyer who thrives in fast-moving environments and is passionate about building the legal foundations for the future of money.
Location: flexible across the UK/Europe.

Responsibilities

• Advising the business on compliance and legal issues related to structuring new and existing stablecoin, payments, and card products and features
• Expanding KAST’s product offering in line with regulatory requirements
• Drafting and maintaining customer-facing legal documents including Terms of Service, user agreements, and product-specific disclosures
• Managing and advising UK, EU, Middle East, financial services, digital asset and privacy regulatory requirements 
• Monitoring and advising on developments from the FCA, EBA, ESMA, ECB, CBUAE, VARA, DFSA, FSRA and relevant national competent authorities — and their impact on KAST's regional business
• Owning KAST’s global data privacy legal function 
• Collaborating with Product and Commercial teams to design compliant product structures for retail and institutional clients, including card program agreements
• Draft, review, and negotiate commercial agreements with counterparties, including service providers, partners and institutional clients. 
•  Supporting card programme compliance under Visa/Mastercard network rules and relevant EEA/UK issuing frameworks
• Ensuring robust compliance with UK, EU, Middle East financial services regulation including AML/CTF, OFAC, sanctions and Travel Rule as applicable
• Managing and overseeing outside counsel relationships, including firm selection, matter scoping, and legal spend
• Engaging proactively with regions regulators and industry associations to advocate for clear, innovation-friendly frameworks

Qualifications & Skills

• 5+ years of PQE - qualification in England & Wales or EU Member State; dual qualification (e.g. UK + EU jurisdiction) an advantage
• Experience advising on digital assets (and payments), including time at a top law firm or in-house 
• Strong knowledge of the FCA regulatory framework and UK financial services law; working knowledge of EU financial services regulation (MiCA, PSD2, EMD2, MLD5/6) and at least one MENA regulatory framework
• Hands-on data privacy expertise — UK GDPR and/or EU GDPR advisory experience 
• Familiarity with AML/CTF, sanctions compliance, and Travel Rule obligations in a EMEA context
• Excellent communicator and stakeholder manager, with the ability to take decisions where there is ambiguity and translate complex regulation into practical business guidance
• Comfortable working across multiple jurisdictions simultaneously in a fast-paced, high-growth environment