Ilian
Petrov

Ilian practises in the Middle East financial services regulatory team and advises leading international financial institutions, banks, payment service providers and asset managers on the regulatory regimes of the DIFC, ADGM and Onshore UAE.

His experience includes supporting UAE and foreign banks across a broad range of regulatory and advisory matters spanning both Onshore UAE and the UAE financial free zones. This includes the establishment of branches within the financial free zones, with a particular focus on defining the regulatory perimeter of the branch, the scope of its regulatory permissions, and the allocation of activities between the free-zone branch and the parent entity. Much of this work involves detailed analysis of the interaction between the Onshore UAE and financial free-zone regulatory regimes, together with the ongoing governance and compliance considerations of operating across multiple jurisdictions.

Ilian also advises banks on the expansion of their product and service offerings - including the introduction of portfolio management and investment advisory activities, and the development and launch of new banking products and account structures such as virtual accounts, escrow arrangements linked to payment token-related activities, and notice-of-deposit accounts. He is well versed in supporting banks on client complaints and regulatory enquiries, advising on complaint-handling frameworks and the regulatory obligations that complaints relating to regulated activities can trigger.

A significant part of Ilian's practice also focuses on payments and financial market infrastructure. He advises payment service providers and financial institutions on client money flows, merchant acquiring structures, card scheme requirements, and the regulatory constraints applicable under the DIFC, ADGM and UAE Central Bank regimes, with particular experience in complex payment flows involving card schemes and multiple payment service providers, the regulatory risks of cross-border payment services for Onshore UAE clients, and payment processing and account structures.

Ilian also regularly advises asset managers, funds and private equity sponsors on DIFC and ADGM licensing, structuring, cross-border marketing, regulatory change and ongoing compliance, and has contributed to numerous high-value regulatory mandates across the Middle East.