Jonathan Crompton is a leading advisor to companies and individuals in the Financial Services and Technology sectors. With nearly 20-years of on-the-ground experience in Asia, he is a dual-qualified Commercial and Banking Litigation lawyer based in Hong Kong.
Jonathan maintains a broad practice, while specialising particularly in Financial Services, Technology disputes and investigations. He has extensive experience in traditional aspects of the finance industry, with a particular interest in the intersection of the Financial Services and Technology sectors, including new tech disputes (including helping victims of cyber and crypto frauds), advising technology companies on disputes with financial industry participants, and advising on the legal and regulatory consequences of cyber and data breach incidents which are increasingly impacting financial services companies.
With extensive experience of complex cross-border disputes and investigations, Jonathan has a broad international client base comprised of asset managers, private equity and private debt funds, cryptocurrency service providers, leading multi-national corporations and brands, and individuals.
Jonathan represents clients in disputes before national courts and arbitral tribunals (acting as advocate where this is in the client’s best interests), in investigations by regulators, and in pre-litigation scenarios. His regulatory experience includes guiding clients through investigations by financial services regulators such as Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) and HKMA, and data privacy regulators such as Hong Kong’s Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Commission and the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office.
RPC’s predominantly ‘conflict free’ position vis-à-vis top tier banks enables Jonathan and his team to act where other firms cannot, both in representing employees of those banks in regulatory investigations and in claims against banks by individuals and other companies (including financial services businesses).
Jonathan is ranked in Chambers and Partners’ Greater China Region and Global guides (for Dispute Resolution (International Firms) – China) and recognised as a ‘key lawyer’ in Legal 500’s Asia Pacific – Hong Kong guide (for Dispute Resolution: International Arbitration and Dispute Resolution: Litigation)
As the Asia lead for RPC’s ReSecure cyber incident response service, Jonathan provides crisis response advice to victims of ransomware and other external cyberattacks and internal data breaches. As a result, his team has built a network of contacts around Asia that help advise clients on the legal, technical and PR aspects of data protection.
Jonathan is the lead author of the Hong Kong chapters of Lexology Getting The Deal Through’s Financial Services Litigation comparative guide, and of The Legal 500’s Data Protection and Cyber Security comparative guide.
Jonathan is qualified in England & Wales and Hong Kong. Having trained at a well-known Magic Circle firm in London he qualified into its banking litigation team, with whom he worked in London, Hong Kong and Thailand. He has undertaken secondments to the High Court in London (as a Judicial Assistant to Mr. Justice David Richards) and to Citigroup’s Equity Derivatives and Hybrid Products team.
Representative experience:
Disputes
- Advising an Asia-based hedge fund in a multi-jurisdictional financing dispute with the Liberty Commodities / GFG group of companies
- Advising a Partner of an Asian buyout fund in a private dispute with the Hong Kong-based wealth management division of a leading European investment bank
- Representing a leading multinational software company in defending HKIAC arbitration proceedings brought by an Asian bank for alleged breach of a Software Licensing and Services Agreement
- Successfully representing a Hong Kong special purpose vehicle in HKIAC Administered Arbitration proceedings, and US enforcement proceedings, against a US individual and his former US lawyer for sums due under a financing agreement
- Advising the portfolio manager of a large hedge fund on the termination of his employment, including responding to allegations of insider dealing in foreign-listed securities
- Advising the victim of the then-largest telephone scam in Hong Kong history in successfully recovering sums stolen from her bank account
- Advising the victim of a cryptocurrency fraud on steps to secure and recover sums lost in a Sha Zhu Pan (Pig Butchering) scam
- Advising an ultra-high net worth individual on recovering sums stolen in a US$100mn investment management fraud perpetrated by a Spanish individual and his companies registered in Hong Kong, Switzerland and Hungary, including proceedings before the High Courts of Hong Kong and Singapore
Regulatory
- Successfully representing a former employee of a US investment bank in an investigation by the SFC into alleged breach of proprietary trading rules
- Successfully representing an employee of a US investment bank in an investigation by the SFC into alleged breach of IPO sponsor obligations
- Successfully representing the former financial controller of a Hong Kong listed company in an investigation by the SFC into allegations of disclosure of insider information
- Representing a former equity research analyst of an investment bank in an investigation by the SFC into allegations of disclosure of inside information (ongoing)
Cyber
- Advising a Hong Kong-based asset manager with over US$12.3bn AUM in responding to an Office365 cyber-attack
- Advising a Hong Kong-based asset manager with over US$6bn AUM in responding to a LockBit2.0 ransomware attack
Roles
- Member, Vis East Moot Foundation Advisory Council
- Member, HKIAC Users Council
- Member, Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data’s Data Protection Officer’s Club
- Board of Directors, Justice Without Borders
- Judicial Officer, Hong Kong Rugby and Asia Rugby
Education
- King’s College London, LLB, Law with European Legal Studies
Admissions
- England & Wales – 2006
- Hong Kong – 2012
Languages
