Specialist UK Telecoms, Data and Payments Regulation Lawyers
Clear, senior-level regulatory and commercial advice for telecoms, data protection and payments
If your business operates in UK telecoms, processes personal data, or provides payment services, regulation determines what you can build, how you can compete, and what risks you carry. Bratby Law provides specialist regulatory and transactional advice across telecoms, data protection and payments, led by Rob Bratby, a Chambers Band 2 telecoms lawyer with over 30 years’ experience spanning the UK telecoms regulator, senior in-house roles at network operators, and partnership at international law firms. Clients instruct the firm through three models: Direct Legal Advice, Specialist Co-counsel and Fractional General Counsel.
Chambers & Partners Band 2 Telecoms (UK Guide 2026)
Legal 500 Leading Partner, Telecoms (London)
Lexology Global Elite Thought Leader, Data Protection
When clients instruct us
New product launch in a regulated sector
Regulatory compliance review, licensing requirements and go-to-market risk assessment for telecoms operators, fintechs and platforms launching new services. Product launch advice
Regulatory due diligence on an acquisition
Telecoms, data protection and payments risk assessment for investors and acquirers in regulated sectors. Due diligence
AI product launch or data compliance review
DPIA, controller/processor analysis and UK GDPR compliance for technology companies deploying AI-enabled products. AI and data advice
FCA or PSR authorisation application
Payment services and e-money authorisation, safeguarding requirements and PSR scheme compliance. Authorisation advice
Ongoing senior regulatory counsel
Fractional General Counsel for telecoms, fintech and data businesses that need board-level legal support without a full-time hire. Fractional GC
Your firm lacks sector expertise
Specialist co-counsel for law firms handling telecoms, data or payments matters that require regulatory depth. Co-counsel
An end-to-end regulatory perspective
Rob Bratby’s experience spans three perspectives that are seldom combined in a single advisor:
The Regulator’s Perspective
Work at Oftel, the predecessor to Ofcom, provides first-hand experience of how UK communications regulation is developed, interpreted and enforced. This includes leadership of the project to liberalise the UK’s international telecoms infrastructure market (subsea cables and satellite), and a detailed understanding of regulatory intent and enforcement dynamics.
The Operator’s Perspective
Fractional General Counsel appointments at regulated telecoms and payments businesses, and embedded general-counsel roles within industry-wide joint ventures, provide practical insight into how businesses are run, where risks arise, how compliance is operationalised and how commercial and regulatory decisions are made inside carriers, fintechs and infrastructure operators.
The Advisor’s Perspective
Senior partnership and management roles at international US and UK law firms in both London and Singapore provide a deep understanding of how high quality legal advice is delivered and translated into commercial and regulatory decisions at board level.
This combination enables advice that is legally rigorous, commercially aligned and technically grounded.
Telecoms, data protection and payments regulation lawyers
Bratby Law advises on telecoms regulation, data protection, payments regulation and transactions across the communications, financial services and technology sectors.
Why Choose Bratby Law?
Sector expertise
Bratby Law advises exclusively on telecoms regulation, data protection, and payments regulation. That concentration means deeper knowledge of the regulatory environment, faster analysis, and advice that reflects how regulators actually behave: not how the textbook says they should.
Senior delivery
Every instruction is handled by Rob Bratby personally. With 30 years’ experience spanning Oftel, senior in-house roles at network operators, and partnership at international law firms, you receive the analysis directly: not through a junior team. The firm uses AI tools to extend research capacity and accelerate document review, so senior judgment is applied to more of your matter, not less.
Unique perspective
Rob Bratby has sat on all three sides of the regulatory table: as a regulator at Oftel, as General Counsel at major operators, and as external counsel. That inside-out perspective informs every piece of advice. He currently holds fractional General Counsel appointments at TOTSCo, UKPI, TelXL, and Core.
Independent directory rankings
Our specialist expertise is recognised in major independent legal directories:
- Chambers & Partners: Rob Bratby is ranked as a band 2 lawyer in the UK Guide 2026 in the “Telecommunications” category: Chambers
- The Legal 500: Rob Bratby is listed as a “Leading Partner – Telecoms” in London (TMT – IT & Telecoms): The Legal 500
- Lexology: Rob Bratby is featured on Lexology’s expert profiles as a Global Elite Thought Leader for data: Lexology
Ready to discuss your matter?
What clients say about Bratby Law:
Insights
-
UK Compute Roadmap and data protection: AI infrastructure obligations
DSIT’s Compute Roadmap envisages £2bn of UK AI compute investment by 2030. The data protection regime that attaches to organisations building, procuring or operating that infrastructure is not in the Roadmap. This post sets out the four obligations under UK GDPR and DUAA 2025: DPIA, automated decision-making, international transfers, and Article 28 processor agreements.
-
First DMCCA 2024 commitments: Apple, Google and platform regulation in practice
In short: The CMA has accepted the first voluntary commitments under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, from Apple and Google in respect of aspects of their UK mobile platforms. The commitments cover app review, app ranking, data use and iOS interoperability. They are legally binding and signal how the new digital markets…
-
nexfibre/Substantial CMA inquiry: what it signals for UK fibre M&A
In short: The CMA opened its invitation to comment on the £2 billion nexfibre/Substantial transaction on 23 April 2026. The case is in pre-notification; the statutory 40-working-day Phase 1 clock has not started. The deal is publicly targeted at Q3 2026 completion; that timeline carries real Phase 2 risk, and mandatory NSI Act 2021 notification…
-
AI in legal practice: what I tried, what broke, and what I built
After a year of testing frontier AI models and legal-specific platforms, the problem was not capability but structure. A law firm cannot be built around a model. It needs a method in which AI operates under controlled, auditable workflows, with the lawyer as the final gate.
-
Frontier AI cyber risk and the TSA 2021: Ofcom’s open letter to Communications Providers
In short: Ofcom has written to UK Communications Providers on 21 April 2026 to assess cyber risks from frontier AI, citing the AI Security Institute’s evaluation of Claude Mythos Preview. The duties already sit in section 105A of the Communications Act 2003 and the Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021 framework. CPs must now document assessment of…
-
Upper 6 GHz Spectrum: Ofcom’s High-Density Area Consultation
Ofcom’s consultation on how high-density areas are defined for Upper 6 GHz (6425-7125 MHz) subnational mobile licences closes on 6 July 2026. What MNOs and enterprise campus operators must know.
Subscribe to receive new Bratby Law articles on telecoms, data protection and payments regulation direct to your inbox.
Regulator and legislation links
- Ofcom – UK Communications Regulator
- Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) – Data Protection and Privacy
- DSIT – UK Government: Digital, Telecoms and Data Policy
- Communications Act 2003
- Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006
- Data Protection Act 2018
- UK GDPR
- EU GDPR
- EU AI Act
- PECR
- Online Safety Act 2023
- Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
- Payment Systems Regulator (PSR)
- Payment Services Regulations 2017
- Electronic Money Regulations 2011
- Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013