Maxwell Rich, a longtime legal executive at Republic, has departed the investment crowdfunding platform to join the global law firm Morrison Foerster (MoFo). Rich has also been President and Chair of the Association of Online Investment Platforms (AOIP), a position he will now pass on to Vice President Bill Clark, CEO of MicroVentures. Rich will continue on as an advisor for AOIP, which has advocated on behalf of the investment crowdfunding industry, seeking regulatory and legislative improvements to the growing ecosystem.
In a blog post, Rich announced that after seven years at Republic, he was moving into private practice, where he would put his “hard-won” legal skills to work to help a broader audience. MoFo has worked with Republic in the past.
Rich stated:
“I’m confident in the firm and its abilities, having been a client first, and will use that perspective and empathy to continue being a partner to clients of the firm.”
According to his bio on the MoFo website, Rich will be working as part of the firm’s Emerging Companies + Venture Capital Group. His responsibilities include supporting firms from inception to becoming a public firm. Legal areas include regulatory issues, transactions, financings, mergers and acquisitions, and more. Rich has deep experience in Fintech including blockchain and digital assets. Having worked for Republic, a global online investment firm, Rich has been deeply engaged with the exempt offering ecosystem in the US as well as other jurisdictions like the UK.
During his tenure leading the AOIP, Rich frequently crafted comment letters sent to members of Congress and financial regulators supporting the securities crowdfunding industry. Along with other AOIP members, Rich regularly visited with public officials on Capitol Hill to directly discuss issues of importance for platforms while seeking to improve an industry that recognizes the need for success for all stakeholders, including issuers and investors.