As President-elect Donald Trump prepares for his inauguration on Jan. 20, concerns over his conflicts of interest have made headlines throughout the nation. It has become well known that Trump and his family have business interests around the world and maintain close business ties with foreign leaders.
Although Trump has publicly announced that he would hand over management of his businesses to his children, legislative leaders and constitutional experts are urging a complete divestiture of his business holdings. The public furor over Trump and his conflicts of interest between his role as the president of the United States and his role as a business owner and operator demonstrates the need for clear rules and guidelines in governance, whether in public or private spheres.
This is especially true in the still nascent but rapidly growing FinTech industry, where new business models and new ways of acquiring, deploying and processing money are hatched continuously and where directors and officers of FinTech companies look for sound legal advice on how best to conduct themselves in an environment that is increasingly critical of overlapping business interests.