Richard B. Holbrook, Jr. is a partner in Crowell & Moring's Corporate Group. Mr. Holbrook represents financial institutions, high-tech companies, government contractors and other corporations on mergers and acquisitions, investments, joint ventures, and corporate transactions. He also has extensive experience with the formation of and investments into investment funds (representing both sponsors and limited partners) and a wide variety of commercial and corporate agreements, including joint venture agreements, IT-related services agreements, supply agreements and trademark licenses. Mr. Holbrook advises on matters relating to commodity futures law, including relating to commodity pool operators and commodity trading advisors.
Representative transactions that Mr. Holbrook has handled or assisted with include:
M&A and Joint Ventures
FinTech, RegTech, Market Structure and Financial Services
- Goldman Sachs in its investment in LinkedIn Corporation., FTEN, Inc., J.L. McGregor & Co., Quantitative Services Group, LLC,TrimTabs Investment Research, Inc., APX, Inc., Epocrates, Inc.
- Citibank, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan in their investment in Access FinTech.
- JPMorgan and Euclid Opportunities (NEX) in their investment in OpenFin.
- Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Pivot Investment Partners, and DRW Holdings in their investment in Droit Financial Technologies.
- Goldman Sachs in connection with the spin-off of its REDI business (a software-based execution management system business) and the related investment by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Bank, Citadel Securities, BNP Paribas, and Lightyear Capital into REDI.
- Outside corporate counsel to The Green Exchange, a designated contract market (futures) that was a consortium among the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and other major market participants, including in connection with the sale of The Green Exchange to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
- Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital, Citadel Securities, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, TD AMERITRADE, and UBS in their proposed purchase of a significant equity interest in NYSE Amex options, an options exchange operated by NYSE Euronext.
- Goldman Sachs and Vernon & Park in their investment in UNX Holdings LLC.
- NYSE Euronext in its acquisition of Wombat Financial Software, Inc.
- A London Stock Exchange-listed company in its acquisition of a commodity futures and OTC financial products company.
- Citigroup in its acquisition of Lava Trading Inc.
Information Technology
- OpenText Corporation, a NASDAQ and Toronto Stock Exchange listed provider of information technology, in connection with its acquisitions of Catalyst Repository Systems, Inc., Covisint Corporation, EasyLink Services International Corporation (a NASDAQ-listed provider of business messaging and transaction services), Informative Graphics Corp., Global360, MetaStorm and Streamserve.
- SecureWave, a Luxembourg company, in its sale to PatchLink Corporation (now Lumension).
Government Contractors
- ForceX, a government contractor, in its sale to L-3 Communications.
- BAE Systems in various M&A transactions and joint ventures.
- A software company in its acquisition of assets and the formation of a joint venture to develop software for the public health sector.
Additional Transactions
- Kobe Steel and Kobelco Construction Machinery in a global alliance and related asset and share acquisitions and dispositions, technology licensing arrangements, joint venture arrangements and supply arrangements with another construction equipment manufacturer in a transaction spanning Japan, the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, Australia, The Netherlands, Germany, Shanghai and Singapore.
- A luxury goods manufacturer in a joint venture with a Japanese trading company, including with respect to trademark arrangements, joint venture arrangements, share purchase arrangements and production and supply arrangements in Japan.
- An information provider in a joint venture-like arrangement and database licensing arrangement in the Japanese OTC pharmaceutical market.
- An Asian sovereign and several state-owned corporations vis-à-vis a syndicate of international banks in connection with the restructuring of a syndicated loan and the settlement of related arbitration.
- A consortium of major specialty plastics manufacturers in the United States and Europe in the formation of a joint venture for online sales of specialty plastics.
- A secured lender during the out-of-court work-out of a NYSE listed computer equipment leasing company.
Fund Formation and Investments
Mr. Holbrook has an active practice representing fund sponsors in fund formation across a variety of fund strategies, principally focused on private equity and venture capital strategies (particularly FinTech related funds). Mr. Holbrook also works with public and private investors investing in institutional-level funds. After formation of a fund or investment in a fund, Mr. Holbrook often represents the sponsor or investors in ongoing investments and matters.
From 1998 until 2004, Mr. Holbrook was associated with Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. While at Cleary Gottlieb, Mr. Holbrook spent more than three years in their Tokyo, Japan office. AsiaLaw recognized Mr. Holbrook as a leading lawyer in Japan for M&A and Corporate Finance in AsiaLaw's Leading Lawyers 2003.
Mr. Holbrook clerked for the Honorable Emilio M. Garza on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1997 to 1998. Mr. Holbrook is proficient in oral and written Japanese. He has lived and worked in Japan for more than five years.
Affiliations
Admitted to practice: District of Columbia, Georgia (inactive)
Highlights, News & Knowledge
Speeches & Presentations
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"Cross-Border Financing of Fintech Start-ups: A Practical Look at Venture Debt and Venture Equity Financing Practices in Canada, Europe and the U.S.," ABA Business Law Section 2019 Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C.
(September 13, 2019).
Moderator: Jonathan Cardenas; Panelist: Richard B. Holbrook, Jr.
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"Cross-Border Fintech Investment: From Venture Financing to Private Equity and Beyond," ABA Business Law Section 2019 Spring Meeting, Vancouver, Canada
(March 28, 2019).
Program Chair and Moderator: Jonathan Cardenas; Panelist: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Coming to America: Corporate Law Considerations Applicable to Investments in the United States," International Law Institute
(October 23, 2017).
Speakers: Richard B. Holbrook Jr. and Jonathan Nesher.
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"Selling Your Business: From Founding to Managing Sale Proceeds," Crowell & Moring Webinar
(May 19, 2017).
Presenters: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., David B. Robbins, Sam Garbia, Marc Marlin, and Rick Schultz.
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"Private Equity in the Fintech Sector," Family Office & Private Equity Dealmakers Breakfast Series, New York, NY
(October 6, 2016).
Participants: Richard B. Holbrook, Jr. and Mitchell L. Rabinowitz.
Publications
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"SEC Telegram Injunction Is A Wakeup Call For Token Investors," Law360
(April 21, 2020).
Authors: Michelle Ann Gitlitz, Richard B. Holbrook, Jr., Jorge Pesok, and Kayvan M. Ghaffari.
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"Proposed Margin Rules For Uncleared Swaps Will Be Costly," Law360
(October 14, 2014).
Co-Authors: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Jenny E. Cieplak, and Eric Edwards.
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"Uncleared Swaps Margin Proposals: Issues for CCOs To Consider," Institutional Investor's Compliance Reporter
(October 6, 2014).
Co-Authors: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Jenny E. Cieplak, and Mike Gill.
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"Over a Barrel: Strategic Considerations for Investment Funds at the Crossroads of Antitrust and Securities Law," Bloomberg BNA – Antitrust & Trade Regulation Report, Vol. 103, No. 2579
(December 2012).
Co-Authors: Richard C. Holbrook, Jr., Kelly G. Howard, Ryan Tisch, and Christie Stahlke.
Client Alerts & Newsletters
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"SEC Continues Enforcement Push against ICO Issuers by Imposing Penalty Against Unikrn of Substantially All its Assets,"
White Collar Alert
(September 21, 2020).
Contacts: Michelle Ann Gitlitz, Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Jorge Pesok
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"SEC Finalizes Amendments to the Definitions of Accredited Investor and Qualified Institutional Buyer,"
Corporate Alert
(August 27, 2020).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Jon O'Connell
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"Venture Capital Financing Update: National Venture Capital Association Releases Updates to Model Legal Documents,"
Corporate Alert
(August 10, 2020).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Adelicia R. Cliffe, Jon O'Connell, Michel C. Narganes, Matthew Melville
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"COVID-19: The Latin America Perspective (Special Edition) – Venezuela,"
International Dispute Resolution Alert
(May 4, 2020).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Ian A. Laird, Anne Elise Herold Li, John L. Murino, David (Dj) Wolff, Nicole Sayegh Succar, Karla I. Arias, Dr. sc. nat., Eduardo Mathison
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"COVID-19: The Latin America Perspective II – Argentina and Peru,"
International Dispute Resolution Alert
(April 22, 2020).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Ian A. Laird, Anne Elise Herold Li, John L. Murino, Karla I. Arias, Dr. sc. nat., Eduardo Mathison
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"COVID-19: The Latin America Perspective,"
International Dispute Resolution Alert
(April 9, 2020).
Contacts: Karla I. Arias, Dr. sc. nat., Eduardo Mathison, Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Ian A. Laird, Anne Elise Herold Li, John L. Murino
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"Wakeup Call: The Order Halting Telegram’s Token Issuance Carries Significant Implications for All SAFT Investors,"
White Collar Alert
(April 6, 2020).
Contacts: Michelle Ann Gitlitz, Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Kayvan M. Ghaffari, Jorge Pesok
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"The 2018 CFIUS Amendments: Ten Questions Venture Capital Fund Managers and Investors Need to Answer,"
Corporate Alert
(August 21, 2018).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Robert Holleyman
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"Introducing Crowell & Moring’s Compliance “Check-Up” for Government Contractors,"
Government Contracts Bullet Points
(March 6, 2018).
Contacts: Stephen J. McBrady, Peter Eyre, Adelicia R. Cliffe, Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Cryptocurrency in Small Bytes: What’s in, What’s Out, and What’s a Spot? Understanding CFTC Jurisdiction,"
Blockchain Alert
(February 27, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Tax Reform in Small Bites: Restructuring General Partner Returns,"
Tax Reform in Small Bites
(February 20, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Tax Reform in Small Bites: New Withholding Taxes on Sales of Fund Interests,"
Tax Reform in Small Bites
(February 12, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Tax Reform in Small Bites: Phantom Income for Funds and their Investors,"
Tax Reform in Small Bites
(February 5, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Tax Reform in Small Bites: Carried Interest Changes,"
Investment Funds Alert
(January 29, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Tax Reform in Small Bites: Structuring Foreign Investments for Funds,"
Investment Funds Alert
(January 23, 2018).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Top 6 Tips for Blockchain Start-Ups,"
(August 30, 2016).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"The CFTC's Cross-Border Margin Proposal: What Investment Funds Need to Know,"
(July 7, 2015).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Regulators to Consider Changes to Margin Requirements for Retail FX Transactions,"
Investment Funds Alert
(January 21, 2015).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Proposed Margin Rules for Uncleared Swaps: What Investment Funds Need to Know,"
Investment Funds Alert
(September 8, 2014).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"CFTC Begins to Discuss Risk Management with Investment Funds,"
Investment Funds Alert
(March 20, 2014).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"SEC Expands Scope of 'Knowledgeable Employees' Who Can Invest in Funds,"
Investment Funds Alert
(February 18, 2014).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"DOL Provides ERISA Fiduciary Relief to FCMs and Clearing Organizations for Certain Swap Transactions with ERISA Plans,"
Corporate Alert
(February 8, 2013).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Continuing FTC Focus on Investment Funds for Failure to File Timely HSR Notifications,"
Corporate Alert
(September 27, 2012).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"CFTC Issues Final Rules Regarding Exemptions, Registration and Compliance Obligations for CPOs and CTAs of Public and Private Funds,"
Corporate Alert
(March 14, 2012).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"SEC Approves Private Fund Reporting Rule,"
Corporate Alert
(October 27, 2011).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"Proposed Legislation To Tax "Carried Interests" as Ordinary Income,"
Corporate Alert
(September 28, 2011).
Contacts: Paul J. Pollock, Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
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"New SEC Investment Adviser Regulations: What Do You Need To Know?,"
Corporate Alert
(June 28, 2011).
Contacts: Richard B. Holbrook Jr., Todd D. Rosenberg
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"SEC Proposes Changes to the Qualified Client Definition,"
Corporate Alert
(May 24, 2011).
Contact: Richard B. Holbrook Jr.
Firm News & Announcements