Head of Legal - Corporate & Commercial

Location: London, UK (Hybrid - minimum 2 days per week in the office)

About One Trading

One Trading is a regulated European trading venue building the next generation of financial markets infrastructure. Headquartered in Amsterdam, with a presence in London, we operate across both traditional and digital asset markets.

We are a small, ambitious team operating in a highly regulated and fast-moving environment. Our people have significant ownership, work directly with senior decision-makers and are expected to solve problems rather than simply identifying them.

The Role

We are looking for an experienced Head of Legal - Corporate & Commercial to lead our day-to-day legal function.

This is a sole-counsel, hands-on role covering a broad range of matters including commercial contracts, client-facing documentation, corporate matters, employment, disputes and the wider legal needs of the business. You will be the point of reference for legal matters, working alongside our Compliance function.

You will work closely with senior management, manage external counsel where specialist advice is required, and help build strong internal legal capability. As a Dutch-headquartered group, experience with Dutch law would be a significant advantage.

You will also act as the Group’s Data Protection Officer (DPO), with responsibility for overseeing data protection compliance and providing independent advice and oversight in accordance with applicable data protection legislation.

What You’ll Do

• Lead corporate and commercial legal matters across the Group, including governance, corporate transactions and group structuring.
• Draft, review and negotiate commercial agreements across clients, suppliers, technology, outsourcing and strategic partnerships.
• Advise across wider legal matters including IP, insurance, procurement, corporate policies, and employment matters including contracts, performance issues, terminations, restructurings and disputes.
• Provide practical, commercially focused advice to senior management and teams across the business.
• Corporate finance transactions such as funding rounds, corporate reorgansation and restructuring.
• Manage commercial and employment disputes and litigation, including instructing and overseeing external counsel where required.
• Manage external legal advisers and legal spend, bringing work in-house wherever practical.
• Act as Data Protection Officer (DPO), overseeing the data protection framework, advising on data protection requirements, and acting as a point of contact for data protection authorities and data subjects.

What We’re Looking For

• 5+ years’ relevant experience.
• Strong corporate and commercial experience, gained in-house, in private practice, or preferably both.
• Experience negotiating complex commercial agreements and advising on corporate and employment matters.
• Strong commercial judgement and the confidence to advise senior stakeholders.
• A hands-on, adaptable approach, with the ability to quickly understand and take ownership of unfamiliar legal issues.
• Comfortable working across a broad remit in a fast-moving, entrepreneurial business.
• Experience working with financial services regulators and a familiarity with applicable regulatory frameworks including MiFID II, MiCAR, DORA, PSD2, GDPR, IFR / IFD, CRR.
• Experience working in cross-jurisdictional environments.

Experience with Dutch Law, financial services, trading or other regulated businesses would be a significant advantage.

What Success Looks Like

You will become the trusted first point of contact for legal matters across One Trading, enabling the business to move quickly while effectively managing legal risk.

We are looking for someone who enjoys breadth and ownership. One day you may be negotiating a major commercial agreement, the next advising on an employment issue, transaction, or dispute. You will be comfortable getting involved wherever the business needs legal support.