“Pádraig has deep industry knowledge in respect of venture capital investments, the technology sector and the jurisdictions where we invest.”
Pádraig Walsh
Partner
Practice Area(s)
Jurisdictions
- Hong Kong (2000)
- Ireland (1998)
Biography
Pádraig is a partner in the Corporate and Commercial Department and he leads the TMT Practice of Tanner De Witt. Pádraig has been practising as a lawyer over two decades and is recognised by several peers and publications as a leading lawyer in the TMT field. He was also recently ranked as one of ALB’s Top 50 Super TMT lawyers.
Pádraig’s practice focuses on TMT work. He has represented suppliers and providers within all verticals of the technology sector and also all businesses in respect of their technology needs. He advises on the full range of common issues including licensing, technology procurement and integration, subscription service arrangements, digital asset commercialisation, data protection, cyber, and venture capital, telcom regulation, gaming and media licensing and commercial arrangements, and corporate transactions.
Pádraig advises on venture capital equity and debt financings, leading on investment negotiations and completion, and preparing documents to implement deal terms. He also advises on the range of common issues for emerging companies, such as corporate structuring, equity incentive plans, and corporate governance. He represents venture firms, corporate and strategic investors, and founders. Pádraig has often advised founders as their ventures grow from seed through alphabet round financing to exit by trade sale. Pádraig also advises companies of all sizes on mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructurings, and joint ventures.
Pádraig has a particular interest in data privacy and protection, and has advised clients on the requirements in Hong Kong on the collection, use, processing, transfer, storage and deletion of personal data. He has assisted clients to prepare privacy and transfer impact assessments, and to implement privacy management programmes. Pádraig also advises on cyber response and remediation, and frequently helps businesses in crisis in the immediate aftermath of a serious cyber attack. Pádraig is accredited by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) as both a Certified Information Privacy Professional/Asia (CIPP/A) and a Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM).
Pádraig advises clients on regulatory and compliance issues when developing and deploying technology in financial services. His experience in this area has enabled him to advise clients on a number of innovative and complex fintech projects. He is at the forefront of advising on legal issues for emerging businesses using blockchain technology. This has included regulatory advice in relation to token sale offerings, security token offerings, RWA projects, and regulation and licensing of various digital asset platforms and businesses. Pádraig also has significant experience advising on payment and stablecoin regulation.
Pádraig is a Notary Public.
Biography
- Advised the founders of a virtual insurer on the conclusion of its Series A, Series A+ and Series B investment rounds.
- Advised a number of companies and founders on alphabet investment rounds. Documentation included term sheet, investment agreement, subscription and shareholders agreement, articles of association and approval documents.
- Advised a Hong Kong-based, venture capital backed accelerator programme on the equity subscription and association funding arrangements for operating its Web3 accelerator programme.
- Acted for a purchaser of a company that developed proprietary technology which included cash and token considerations.
- Advised numerous business in the technology sector on the structuring of equity incentive plans, including restricted share plans, share option plans, stock appreciation rights and notional unit schemes.
- Advised an online gambling business on the technology rights and intellectual property licensing in complex multi-jurisdictional business separation and asset transfer
- Advised an online retail property brokerage on technology cross-licensing and maintenance services transaction
- Advised on the service level agreements and outsourcing arrangements in respect of tech refurbishment services for electronic devices
- Advised on complex arrangements for licensing of accounting and document management cloud-based software, including data protection, information security and service level arrangements
- Advised on and drafted terms of use for the online sales of products and services for numerous businesses in the technology sector.
- Advised a banking and financial service company on several complex Hong Kong legislations in respect to data privacy, criminal enforcement and administrative public laws.
- Advised a global professional service firm on response to data breach and potential consequences under the privacy and other legislation.
- Advised a multinational car company on a cross-jurisdictional data processing agreements.
- Advised on various transfer impact assessments to assess Hong Kong for the purpose of data export from the EEA to Hong Kong.
- Advised on various privacy impact assessments in respect of introduction of business projects using personal data (including sensitive personal data) for international and multinational businesses.
- Advised on data transfer, sharing and processing arrangements in respect of sharing of personal data between group companies or among collaborating businesses.
- Strategic advice on responses to Privacy Commissioner enquiries in relation to alleged data collection, use and security issues and data breaches.
- Gap analysis and advice on GDPR and PIPL compliance in Hong Kong in respect of personal information used in business operations in Hong Kong of various businesses operating in the EEA and the PRC.
- Advised a crowdfunding business on a proposed property crowdfunding platform in Hong Kong, including detailed regulatory advice on the relevant licensing requirements, and licensing process.
- Advised a payment fintech business on a range of payment regulatory issues, including trust and company service provider regulation, regulation of stored value facilities, money service operations, money lending, credit card issuance, and banking regulation.
- Advised a receivables financing business in respect of its intended operation of a platform for offering trade receivables of small medium size enterprises for investors to purchase.
- Advised a variety of virtual asset trading platform operators and other digital asset service providers and project teams on the application of Hong Kong securities, payment, anti-money laundering and consumer protection regulation to offering and provision of services to Hong Kong users.
- Advised a cryptocurrency payment business on its online conditions of service in respect of real-time sale and purchase of cryptocurrency.
- Advised on the structuring of a variety of tokenisation projects involving real world assets.
- Advised a number of blockchain based businesses on the application of securities and payment regulation in respect of intended token sales or listing of tokens on exchanges.
- Assisted a cryptocurrency company on structuring additional funding required for a capital call.
Biography
- iTech Law
- PrivacyRules
- Lexing
- PrivSec Global
- Asia Data Privacy Forum
- American Bar Association, International Law Section
- RISE Conference
- WOW Summit
- University of Hong Kong
- Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- Hong Kong Baptist University
- Polytechnic University of Hong Kong
- Hong Kong Science and Technology Park
- Cyberport
Biography
- Legal 500, Asia Pacific Leading Individual for TMT since 2023
- Chambers and Partners, Greater China Region TMT: Data Protection & Privacy category Band 4 since 2022
- ALB Super 50 TMT lawyer in 2022
Biography
- Fintech Association of Hong Kong
- Artificial Intelligence Association of Hong Kong
- Hong Kong China Network Security Association
- International Association of Privacy Professionals
- International Technology Law Association
- Investment Products & Financial Services Sub-Committee to Practitioner Affairs Committee of The Law Society of Hong Kong
- PrivacyRules
- The Law Society of Hong Kong
Biography
Insights
News update: Finfluencers on the SFC regulatory radar
Pádraig Walsh
07 May 2026
Insights
News update: Secondary Trading of Tokenised Authorised Investment Products Permitted in Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
04 May 2026
Insights
News update: Hong Kong Privacy Commissioner claws back privacy protection from agentic AI tools
Pádraig Walsh
30 April 2026
Insights
Enforcement action follows PCPD finding of ineffective data privacy training
Pádraig Walsh
29 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 6)
Pádraig Walsh
21 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 5)
Pádraig Walsh
16 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 4)
Pádraig Walsh
14 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 3)
Pádraig Walsh
09 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 2)
Pádraig Walsh
02 April 2026
Insights
What you need to know about the Protection of Critical Infrastructures (Computer Systems) Ordinance, the cybersecurity legislation in Hong Kong (Part 1)
Pádraig Walsh
31 March 2026
Insights
Fruitful Aspirations: Expansion of permitted virtual asset trading activities
Pádraig Walsh
25 February 2026
Insights
Looking back, looking forward: Highlights and prospects in Hong Kong data privacy regulation
Pádraig Walsh
29 January 2026
Insights
ASPIRe: Looking back and ahead on the regulatory roadmap for virtual assets in Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
22 January 2026
Insights
Legal Update: Banking (Amendment) Ordinance 2025
Pádraig Walsh
12 November 2025
Insights
Legal Update: PCPD’s Investigation Reports on Two Data Breach Incidents
Pádraig Walsh
09 October 2025
Insights
Technology Risks and Rewards from Process Automation and Artificial Intelligence
Pádraig Walsh
18 August 2025
Insights
Legal Update: PCPD’s Checklist on Use of GenAI at Work
Pádraig Walsh
25 April 2025
Insights
Personal data transfers in the Greater Bay Area of China
Pádraig Walsh
19 March 2025
Insights
Cybersecurity: Lessons to learn from the recent SFC thematic review
Pádraig Walsh
07 March 2025
Insights
New SFC Circular streamlines licensing for Virtual Asset Trading Platforms
Pádraig Walsh
10 February 2025
Insights
Looking back, looking forward: Highlights and prospects in Hong Kong fintech regulation
Pádraig Walsh
22 January 2025
Insights
Not yet the last word on efforts to scrap scraping
Pádraig Walsh
13 January 2025
Insights
Broadcasting and media regulation in Hong Kong: An overview
Pádraig Walsh
08 January 2025
Insights
Whose DAO Is it Anyway?
Pádraig Walsh
06 January 2025
Insights
Looking back, looking forward: Highlights and prospects in Hong Kong data privacy regulation
Pádraig Walsh
02 January 2025
Insights
Artificial Intelligence: Regulatory Landscape in China and Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
14 November 2024
Insights
Internet Regulation in Hong Kong: An overview
Pádraig Walsh
14 November 2024
Insights
Telecom Regulation in Hong Kong: An overview
Pádraig Walsh
18 October 2024
Insights
Social media regulation in Hong Kong: An overview
Pádraig Walsh
02 October 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook
Pádraig Walsh
10 September 2024
Insights
DAO and the Law: The Future
Pádraig Walsh
08 May 2024
Insights
DAOs and the law: Enforcement
Pádraig Walsh
03 May 2024
Insights
DAOs and the law: Securities law
Pádraig Walsh
24 April 2024
Insights
DAOs and the law: Legal Wrappers
Pádraig Walsh
17 April 2024
Insights
DAOs and the law: Key Characteristics and Legal Issues
Pádraig Walsh
10 April 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Premises and Bank Accounts
Pádraig Walsh
25 March 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Online Terms of Service
Pádraig Walsh
18 March 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Consumer protection
Pádraig Walsh
11 March 2024
Insights
What you need to know about VATP regulation in Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
04 March 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Employment
Pádraig Walsh
04 March 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Data Protection
Pádraig Walsh
26 February 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Intellectual property
Pádraig Walsh
19 February 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Foreign Investment and Immigration
Pádraig Walsh
14 February 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: Business Establishment
Pádraig Walsh
06 February 2024
Insights
The Hong Kong Market Entry Playbook: The legal foundations
Pádraig Walsh
29 January 2024
Insights
The regulatory framework for virtual asset-related activities in Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
10 January 2024
Insights
VATP regulation in Hong Kong: The VATP Guidelines
Pádraig Walsh
09 January 2024
Insights
The regulatory framework for security token offerings in Hong Kong
Pádraig Walsh
20 December 2023
Insights
VATP Regulation in Hong Kong: The licence application requirements
Pádraig Walsh
14 December 2023
Insights
AI Impact Assessments: A practical guide for businesses
Pádraig Walsh
30 November 2023
Insights
VATP regulation in Hong Kong: The transitional arrangements
Pádraig Walsh
24 October 2023
Insights
PCPD joins international efforts to scrap scraping
Pádraig Walsh
03 October 2023
Insights
Consultation on proposed acceptance of commitments from Foodpanda and Deliveroo
Pádraig Walsh
09 August 2023
Insights
Legal Update: PCPD investigation report on credit reference agency data subject complaint
Pádraig Walsh
26 July 2023
Insights
Legal Update: Privacy considerations for online shopping platforms
Pádraig Walsh
03 July 2023
Insights
VATP regulation in Hong Kong: The regulatory perimeter
Pádraig Walsh
21 June 2023
Insights
VATP regulation in Hong Kong: The journey so far
Pádraig Walsh
01 June 2023
Insights
Latest Privacy Update by Privacy Rules features Padraig Walsh on Hong Kong’s Legislative Change
Pádraig Walsh
10 May 2023
Insights
Legal Update – HKMA Consultation Conclusions on Crypto-assets and Stablecoins
Pádraig Walsh
10 March 2023
Insights
Legal update: Potential changes to the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance
Pádraig Walsh
07 March 2023
Insights
Hong Kong Cookies Regulation
Pádraig Walsh
01 February 2023
Accolades/Testimonials
Chambers and Partners – Greater China Region 2026
“He is very friendly, humble and down to earth but very knowledgeable in his field. He helps me to navigate the legal challenges and always gives me good advice.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China Region 2026
“It is always a pleasure working with Padraig, who possesses impressive legal expertise and communication skills.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China Region 2026
“Pádraig has added great value to us as a startup, especially during the very early set-up phase. We will continue to reach out to Pádraig for any legal advice required going forward.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China Region 2026
“He’s very considerate, commercially aware, articulate and a great mediator when it comes to negotiating terms with other counterparties.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2025
“His knowledge in the field is very high, but his interpersonal skills, patience and ability to maintain control and overview are his real added value.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2025
“Pádraig is an expert in data privacy. He understands both technology and the law, and is the kind of trustworthy and reliable lawyer we need.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2024
“Pádraig was a joy to work with. He is responsive, smart, friendly and very accommodating of special requests – an excellent lawyer.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2023
“He is a very highly skilled IT law expert with whom it is a pleasure to work.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2023
“Pádraig Walsh has fulfilled and surpassed our expectations for legal expertise.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2023
“He has in-depth knowledge of conducting venture capital investments and deep experience in various commercial and business issues.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2023
“Mr. Walsh always considers our business needs and provides us with practical advice.”
Chambers and Partners – Greater China 2023
“Pádraig Walsh is a seasoned TMT attorney, who understands the client’s business and commercial needs. The advice he provides is solid and practical, and he is supported by a group of talented attorneys.”
Legal 500 – Asia Pacific 2023
“Pádraig Walsh is very experienced and understands clients’ business. He has deep knowledge of the market, bringing all this to bear with straightforward and strategic advice. Clients know they are getting good advice that they can rely on.”
Legal 500 – Asia Pacific 2023
“Pádraig Walsh is a standout lawyer who is known for his ability to handle complex matters for clients from the fintech and technology sectors. He is certainly a leader in this practice area.”
Legal 500 – Asia Pacific 2023
“Pádraig Walsh is extremely responsive and provides a consistently high level of client service, with a balanced and pragmatic approach.”
Legal 500 – Asia Pacific 2022
“Pádraig Walsh is particularly knowledgeable about various subsets of the technology sector, including fintech, biotech, insurtech, edutech and cleantech.”
Legal 500 – Asia Pacific 2020
