Fintech counsel, since before it was called fintech.
Caplan Legal is a fractional general counsel practice for fintech, payments and financial services companies. I’m Elana Caplan, an Ontario lawyer who has spent more than twenty years on the legal side of how money moves.
Before “fractional” was a category
When I started this practice in 2010, nobody called it fractional general counsel. What I offered was simple: a general counsel close enough to the business to know how it really runs, without being another full‑time executive on the payroll. After six years in‑house at Afterpay and Square, I’ve come back to it.
The model hasn’t changed much. The market caught up.
Where I’ve been
Most of my career has been inside financial services and payments businesses. I’ve negotiated major merchant and partner agreements, built Afterpay’s Canadian legal function from scratch, led a commercial legal team across four markets, and worked every day with product, partnerships, sales and executive teams. I know how these companies make decisions because I’ve been in the room when they did.
When people call me
1.Launching in Canada
Your product works elsewhere. You need to know what changes when you bring it to Canada: the Retail Payment Activities Act, FINTRAC and AML, the payment card Code of Conduct, consumer protection, privacy.
2.A deal that matters
A bank partnership, a processor or sponsor arrangement, a co-brand, a major merchant or network agreement.
3.A product that’s nearly ready
Someone needs to work out what has to change before launch, and say so early enough for it to matter.
4.You need someone to run legal
You’re between general counsels, outgrowing founder‑signed contracts, or need someone senior enough to make the calls without building a department around them.
I’ve worked across Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia. I know what changes when a payments business crosses a border, and I work with local counsel where another jurisdiction’s law applies. I’m licensed in Ontario.
Who I work with
- Fintech and payments companies launching in Canada
- Canadian fintechs that need a general counsel before they need a full‑time one
- Financial institutions building partnerships with fintechs
- Legal teams that need senior capacity for a launch, a deal, or a gap between hires
The other side of the table
I’ve negotiated for banks and fintechs, platforms and merchants, so I usually know what the other side will care about before they say it.