Legal Counsel, Markets -Vice President
About State Street
At State Street, our people help create better outcomes for the world's investors and the people they serve. As a member of our Markets Legal team, you will have the opportunity to work alongside industry-leading professionals, advise on sophisticated financing transactions, and contribute to strategic initiatives that shape the future of our global business.
Join us and help deliver innovative solutions that support the evolving needs of our clients and the global financial markets.
The Opportunity
State Street is seeking an experienced and commercially focused legal professional to join our Markets Legal team as Vice President, Legal Counsel. This highly visible role will serve as a trusted legal advisor to the Financing Solutions business across EMEA, partnering closely with senior business leaders to support strategic growth, product innovation, complex client transactions, and regulatory initiatives.
The successful candidate will work at the intersection of legal, regulatory, and business strategy. This role offers significant exposure to senior stakeholders and the opportunity to influence key commercial and business decisions within a globally recognized financial institution.
The position primarily supports State Street's Financing Solutions business, which includes Agency Securities Lending, Prime Services, and Secured Financing activities, while also providing legal support across other Markets business lines, including Foreign Exchange, Currency Management, and Global Link, as business needs require.
Why This Role Is Important
Financing Solutions is a strategically important business within State Street's Markets franchise, delivering securities financing and liquidity solutions to many of the world's leading institutional investors.
As a senior member of the Legal team, you will play a critical role in enabling business growth, navigating a rapidly evolving regulatory environment, and providing practical legal guidance that supports commercial success while maintaining appropriate risk and governance standards.
This is an opportunity to work on sophisticated transactions, contribute to new product initiatives, and help shape the future direction of a business operating at the center of global financial markets.
What You Will Be Responsible For
As a key legal advisor to the Financing Solutions business, you will:
- Serve as a primary legal partner to business leaders across EMEA, delivering clear, practical, and commercially focused legal advice.
- Advise on strategic business initiatives, new product development, and enhancements to existing offerings.
- Draft, review, negotiate, and manage a broad range of market-standard and bespoke legal documentation, including securities lending and repurchase agreements.
- Support complex client transactions and onboarding initiatives in partnership with business, operations, risk, compliance, and legal stakeholders globally.
- Provide legal analysis on regulatory developments affecting Financing Solutions and broader Markets activities.
- Advise stakeholders on applicable laws, regulations, and industry developments impacting securities finance, secured financing, and related products.
- Conduct and oversee netting, enforceability, jurisdictional, and related legal analyses across multiple EMEA jurisdictions.
- Lead legal support for internal governance processes, including preparation of legal assessments for product and business approval committees.
- Manage relationships with external counsel and coordinate legal advice across jurisdictions as appropriate.
- Collaborate with global legal colleagues to drive consistency, efficiency, and best practices across the organization.
- Ensure legal templates, policies, standards, and procedures remain current and aligned with applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
- Contribute to a culture of continuous improvement, knowledge sharing, and legal excellence across the Markets Legal team.
What Sets You Apart
You are a pragmatic and solutions-oriented lawyer who combines strong technical expertise with sound commercial judgment. You thrive in a fast-paced environment, enjoy partnering with senior stakeholders, and can effectively balance legal, regulatory, and business considerations.
Successful candidates will demonstrate:
- Strong commercial awareness and the ability to deliver practical, risk-appropriate solutions.
- Credibility and confidence advising senior business leaders and influencing decision-making.
- Outstanding relationship-building and stakeholder management skills.
- The ability to operate effectively across multiple jurisdictions and within a global organiszation.
- Strong project management and organiszational capabilities, with experience managing multiple complex matters simultaneously.
- A collaborative mindset coupled with the ability to work independently and exercise sound judgment.
- Intellectual curiosity and a desire to continuously learn within a dynamic regulatory and business environment.
Qualifications and Experience
To be successful in this role, you should possess:
- Qualification as a solicitor or barrister authoriszed to practice English law.
- Significant experience within a leading law firm, financial institution, broker-dealer, or similar environment supporting securities finance, secured financing, capital markets, or related business lines.
- Deep knowledge of ISDA documentation and securities lending and repurchase master agreements, including the GMSLA and GMRA.
- Experience advising on MiFID, CASS, SFTR, and other relevant financial services regulations.
- Strong understanding of cross-border regulatory and licensing considerations across EMEA.
- Demonstrated experience drafting, negotiating, and advising on complex market-standard and bespoke legal documentation.
- Experience supporting business growth initiatives, complex transactions, and regulatory matters in a highly regulated environment.
- Track record of performing successfully in a collaborative, high-performing team while managing competing priorities and tight deadlines.
- Eligibility to work in the United Kingdom.
The role is located in State Street’s offices in Canary Wharf, London, UK.
About State Street
Across the globe, institutional investors rely on us to help them manage risk, respond to challenges, and drive performance and profitability. We keep our clients at the heart of everything we do, and smart, engaged employees are essential to our continued success.
We are committed to fostering an environment where every employee feels valued and empowered to reach their full potential. As an essential partner in our shared success, you’ll benefit from inclusive development opportunities, flexible work-life support, paid volunteer days, and vibrant employee networks that keep you connected to what matters most. Join us in shaping the future.
As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we consider all qualified applicants for all positions without regard to race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, age, disability, genetic information, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, citizenship, marital status, domestic partnership or civil union status, familial status, military and veteran status, and other characteristics protected by applicable law.
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