Steele Legal Consulting
About Me.
My professional background in international capital markets and securities law provided a foundational understanding of universal economic sensibilities that drive global markets. Starting my career during the dot.com craze, I celebrated countless IPO's that ended up worthless, lived through the subsequent recession, the sub-prime mortgage crisis, moved to alternative markets and geographic regions, flip-flopping back and forth between debt and equity based on market whims beyond the control of individual investors.
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Regulations governing financial markets and institutions ostensibly aim to protect the interests of individual investors. But history has proven such regulations have a perverse result, albiet unintended, due to unbalanced power dynamics inherent within centralized financial institutions which favor the wealthiest at the expense of struggling individuals.
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I was an early believer in digital assets, a 2008 financial experiment that has since evolved into a network of transactional value and efficiency changing global commerce. Once denigrated by governments and centralized institutions, cryptocurrency has now been adopted by those same institutions because they can't afford to ignore it. But cryptocurrency has always been misunderstood..... It's not about the crypto or the currency. It was, is, and always will be much more about the chains that govern it. The implications of this misconception form the basis of SLC's mission- DEX INSIGHT.
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DEX INSIGHT champions individual ownership, micro-enterprise, ethical ingenuity, informed risk tolerance and transparent market systems. Decentralized finance is no longer a concept. It is the future of finance.
Own your worth. Own your future. Because you finally can.
Education
2004
Juris Doctor
University of Chicago Law School
Joseph E. Green Scholar
2000
Bachelor of Arts
Duke University
Magna Cum Laude, B.A. Double Major, Trinity Scholar
1999
Undergraduate Diploma
Oxford University
AAA Honors Diploma in Philosophy, Visiting Scholar Program
Oxford Blues Varsity Basketball Record Holder
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
CROSS-BORDER TRANSACTIONS
ISLAMIC FINANCE
OIL & GAS / ENERGY
MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
CAPITAL MARKETS
GLOBAL EXCHANGE OFFERINGS
PUBLIC/PRIVATE OFFERINGS
FORIEGN PRIVATE INVESTMENT
DECENTRALIZED FINANCE
BLOCKCHAIN REGULATIONS
PRIVATE EQUITY
GOVERNANCE & REGULATIONS
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND
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SL Consultants, Senior Consultant - Present, Asheville, NC
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SL Global Partners, Founder and Managing Partner- 2016 to 2019, Washington, DC
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Arent Fox LLP, Attorney, Capital Markets and Securties. 2015 to 2016, Washington, DC
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Vinson & Elkins, LLP, Attorney, Capital Markets, Securities, Alternative Investments, Islamic Finance. 2004 to 2014, Washington, DC / Dubai / Shanghai / London / Dallas.
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
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International Capital Markets: Closed numerous domestic and international debt and equity securities offerings, including SEC-registered offerings, private placements under Rule 144A and Regulation S, shelf offerings, tender offers and exchange offers on the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, and international securities offerings on a number of foreign exchanges.
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Mergers & Acquisitions: Represented public and private companies in global and domestic acquisitions and divestitures
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Global Corporate Regulation: Advised private and public companies on general corporate governance matters, applicable regulations and best practices. Advised domestic and international issuers on their ongoing compliance obligations under U.S. securities laws, including the drafting of periodic reports under the ‘34 Act and compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. International- Worked out of the Dubai, Shanghai and London offices assisting clients in cross-border transactions and regulatory compliance.
PUBLICATIONS
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“Regulatory Issues: Challenges and Solutions,” Chapter 16 in Global Islamic Finance Report 2011, February 2011
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"Product Positioning in the Global Capital Markets," Chapter 11 in Global Islamic Finance Report 2010, October 2010
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“Material Adverse Change (MAC) Clauses in M&A Transactions,” (co-authored with Star Wenjie Zhang), The China Dealmaker, May 2010
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“Innovation and New Opportunities: Sukuk in the West,” Chapter 28 in Islamic Wealth Management: A Catalyst for Global Change and Innovation, Euromoney Books 2009
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“Examining Alternative Investments & Private Equity,” presented at Islamic Finance World Conference, Toronto, May 2007
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"Sukuk Structures in the Western World," presented at The World Islamic Banking Conference: European Summit, London, July 2008
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“Racial Discrimination: The Record of South Africa”, HRDC, United Nations Economic and Social Council (2001)​
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"Big Law and The Wizard of Oz: Who's Behind the Curtain of Your Big Firm (and the Bill)?" published in Lawyer.com, February 2017
LEADERSHIP & SERVICE
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Women's Truth & Justice Foundation: Co-Founder and Managing Director of Delaware non-profit corporation providing free and reduced-cost legal services to underrepresented women involved in legal matters in the courts of the District of Columbia and surrounding suburbs.
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Board of Directors of Samaritan's Inn, a not-for-profit addiction treatment facility serving the homeless and other underrepresented populations in the Washington, DC Area (2014-2015).
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Human Rights Advocacy: Co-led team of attorneys and law students to Mumbai and Chennai, India to document and prosecute cases of illegal slave labor and human trafficking, Winter, 2006 and Spring 2002, as featured in Duke Magazine (May/June 2002) and the Texas Bar Journal (Sept. 2006). Also, served on a team with a United States attorneys program to train international lawyers in in various areas of trial advocacy in Chiang Mai, Thailand (2007).
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University of Chicago Human Rights Center, “Scholars at Risk” Program: Aided an intervention project on behalf of persecuted academics abroad and developed a curriculum for the University on intellectual freedom, Winter/Spring 2001
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Human Right’s Documentation Center (HRDC): Co-wrote a country report on South Africa published for the U.N. World Conference Against Racism, Spring/Summer 2001
NOTEWORTHY
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Served as a member of the Vinson & Elkins legal team in China (Shanghai and Beijing offices), which grossed the highest transactional M&A volume in China in 2010, including the largest investments by a Chinese company directly into U.S. energy.
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Inaugural Board Member of The Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), tasked with consulting and drafting the first set of regulations governing the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) or currently, the NASDAQ Dubai.
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Served on transactional team awarded 2007 Most Innovative Islamic Finance Deal of the Year ranked by Euromoney.
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Served on transactional team awarded Best Structured Finance Deal of the Year and Best USA Deal of the Year by Islamic Finance News (2007).
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Inducted into the State Bar of Texas Pro Bono College Honor Roll.
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