Sullivan & Cromwell

Sullivan & Cromwell is focused on the highest-stakes end of the crypto legal market — securities enforcement defence (including SEC and CFTC matters), major M&A and joint ventures involving digital assets, regulatory investigations, institutional digital asset product structuring, and exchange transactions. The firm was counsel in SEC vs Ripple and has advised in some of the most consequential institutional crypto transactions of the past decade.

Sullivan & Cromwell is generally not the right fit for early-stage projects. The firm operates at the very top tier of the market — in terms of both fees and matter complexity — and is optimised for high-stakes enforcement matters, major M&A, and institutional mandates where the scale justifies top-tier BigLaw costs. Early-stage founders would typically be better served by more founder-friendly practices such as Perkins Coie.

C. Andrew Gerlach is the firm's leading digital assets partner, widely regarded as one of the US's foremost crypto securities law experts. His involvement in the SEC vs Ripple matter and other landmark crypto regulatory cases has made him the go-to practitioner for matters where securities law expertise is mission-critical.

Sullivan & Cromwell is headquartered in New York with major offices in London, Frankfurt, Tokyo, and Hong Kong — giving it global reach for the cross-border institutional matters it typically handles. The firm's strength is strongest in the US and key financial centres, making it particularly well-suited for matters at the intersection of US securities law and international digital asset markets.

Given the firm's focus on high-stakes, institutional-grade mandates, direct outreach to C. Andrew Gerlach's team through the firm's website or via referral from existing clients is the appropriate route. Warm introductions from financial institutions or other major crypto businesses are the most effective path to engagement.

Sullivan & Cromwell charges top-tier BigLaw rates — among the highest in the US legal market. Specific figures are not published, but partner rates at elite New York firms typically exceed $2,000/hour. For the enforcement matters and major transactions the firm handles, total engagement costs routinely reach seven figures.