With financial institutions and mortgage servicers trying to comply with new regulations in order to mitigate their overall risk problems, the law firm Venable has decided to add a veteran finance and capital markets attorney who handles compliance and regulatory matters.
Daniel Danello has joined the Washington D.C. law firm where he is expected to help clients comply with Dodd-Frank reforms in such areas as foreign exchange, OTC derivatives, futures and money markets.
Danello believes that managing the increased margin, clearing, trading, documentation and other requirements that Dodd-Frank imposes on financial markets transactions is critical for clients that value these markets for the important role they play in hedging and portfolio management.
“The markets for foreign currencies, swaps, repossessions, asset-backed securities, and similar products are vital to corporations, non-profits, pension funds, endowments, insurers, and asset managers which must hedge or require investments tailored to meet the needs of their clients,” Danello said in a press release. “I look forward to helping Venable clients navigate the new regulatory landscape shaped by the Dodd-Frank Act.”
Before joining Venable, Danello spent a decade as associate general counsel to Fannie Mae's treasurer where he advised on governance, compliance and transactions across a number of financial markets.
While representing the mortgage finance firm, he counseled the GSEs multi-family division on its hedging programs and directed the company's ISDA documentation team helping to integrate electronic trading and confirmation systems.
Prior to his work at Fannie, Danello was a senior assistant general counsel at Sallie Mae, the nation's largest originator of federally insured student loans. During the lenders transition from a corporation chartered by Congress to a private company, he managed the legal group responsible for transactions and regulatory and compliance matters involving corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions.
Notable areas where Danello served as counsel includes corporations, endowments and financial institutions in negotiating foreign exchange contracts as well as repurchase agreements. He has advised clients on the margin requirements of Title VII of Dodd-Frank Act and represented a European commercial bank on Lehman bankruptcy workouts.
“Daniel has helped leading issuers and investors negotiate and draft multi-billion dollar derivatives and foreign exchange contracts and is a tremendous asset to our group,” said Larry Gesner, a partner at Venable's finance and investment management practices. “He has an in-depth understanding of many Wall Street trades as well as the finer points of federal legislation and regulatory oversight governing the financial markets.”
Gesner added that Danello's overall background is going to assist financial clients during the continuing wave of regulatory change under the Dodd-Frank Act.
“Insurance companies, mutual funds, credit card issuers and other major institutions are grappling with how to comply with Dodd-Frank with respect to holding and trading derivatives on their balance sheet, as well as how best to document these transactions and make proper disclosures to investors,” he said. “Dan's knowledge deepens the counsel our group offers clients across the financial sector.”
