Overview
Focuses on the regulation, acquisition and sale of payments companies and money transmitters, licensing and registration of traditional and nontraditional money services businesses (including online transmitters, global B2B providers and cryptocurrency exchanges) and the laws and practices applicable to mobile, digital, virtual, electronic, paper- and card-based payment products and systems.
Don has represented leading banks, payments companies, card associations, money transmitters and private equity firms in transactional and regulatory matters associated with payments, prepaid cards, digital currencies, and money transmission.
Don recently served as regulatory counsel to Corpay, Inc. in its pending acquisition of GPS Capital Markets, a B2B cross-border payments company, Advent International in its take private acquisition of Nuvei, a global leader in payments, Flexpoint Ford and GCP Capital Partners in their acquisition of TransNetwork and follow on acquisition of PNC Global Payments, each cross-border processing and payment platforms, Aventiv Technologies in its sale of AllPaid, a government payments provider, to a private investment group, Thoma Bravo affiliated funds in its acquisition of RealPage, a leading provider of technology platform used by owners and managers of real property; WorldRemit in its acquisition of Sendwave, an Africa-focused, app-based remittance firm; Centerbridge Partners affiliated funds in a majority investment in Syncapay, and the combination of daVinci Payments with North Lane Technologies, formerly Wirecard North America; GCP Partners and Trans-Fast Remittance, a leading money transmitter, in connection with the sale of Trans-Fast to MasterCard International; First Data Corporation, a leading payment processor to merchants and financial institutions, in connection its acquisition by Fiserv, and Cambridge Global Payments, a leading B2B international payments provider, in its acquisition by FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc.
In addition, Don served as regulatory counsel to Priority Payments, in its merger with Cynergy Data, creating one of the largest merchant acquirers in the nation; Securus Technologies in its acquisition of JPay Inc., the market-leading technology company that introduced electronic payments to the corrections space, and Securus Technologies in its subsequent acquisition by Platinum Equity affiliated funds; and Gary Jonas Computing Ltd., in its acquisition of substantially all the assets of Club Solutions Inc., a leading provider of payment services and enterprise software in the fitness, sports and leisure industry, from Fiserv Inc.
Don has also acted as regulatory counsel to Western Union in its acquisition of Vigo Remittance, Custom House and Travelex Global Business Payments, and to Western Union and Green Dot in their initial public offerings. In recognition of his role as banking and payments law regulatory counsel for First Data Corp. in connection with its acquisition by an investor group for $29 billion, International Financial Law Review awarded Schulte its prestigious Americas Private Equity Deal of the Year Award.
Don has also managed money transmitter licensing projects for companies of all sizes, including for some of the world’s largest e-commerce marketplaces, traditional brick-and-mortar remitters, and payment processors, to emerging payments companies and cryptocurrency exchanges.
Don is a frequent author and public speaker on topics of interest to the payments industry. He presented at the 2024 Money Transmitter Regulators Association Annual Conference and Regulator School on “Investments in Licensed Money Transmitters” and the 2020 “A Tactical Tool-Kit for Buying, Selling and Investing in Payments Companies: First Hand Strategies for Tackling Deal Points, Regulatory Challenges, Diligence Issues and Post-Signing Coordination.” He also presented at annual MTRA conferences on payment processing and prepaid products, and at recent ACI forums he addressed “The Future of Virtual and Crypto Currencies and the ICO Phenomenon,” “Prepaid Card Compliance 101,” “State Regulatory and Enforcement Efforts Including Latest Challenges Associated with Money Transmitter Licensing Enforcement” and “Evolving State Regulatory and Enforcement Framework Governing Crypto, Virtual and Digital Currencies.”
His recent publications include co-authoring U.S. Trends in the 2024 Chambers FinTech Legal Guide and numerous articles, including “FinCEN Issues Assessment Against Virtual Currency Exchange – the First Enforcement Action Against a Foreign-Located Money Services Business” in Payments Journal, “OCC Issues Draft Guidance and Requirements for Fintech Charter Applications” in Bloomberg BNA – Banking Report and “Final Rules Relating to Money Services Business (MSB) Definitions” in the Journal of Investment Compliance.
Don is recognized by Chambers, The Legal 500 US, IFLR1000 and New York Super Lawyers as a leading attorney in banking, mergers and acquisitions and consumer law. He is ranked Band 1 by Chambers FinTech in Payments & Lending.
Results
- Represented Travelex Holdings Ltd. as regulatory counsel in its sale of its back-office prepaid card operations to MasterCard.
- Represented Monex Grupo Financiero SA de CV, a Mexican financial conglomerate, as regulatory counsel in its acquisition of Tempus Consulting.
- Represented Green Dot as payments regulatory counsel in its initial public offering.
- Represented The Western Union Company as regulatory counsel in the acquisition of Custom House.
- Represented First Data Corporation as regulatory counsel in its bid to acquire InComm.
- Represented First Data Corporation as regulatory counsel in its acquisition by private equity fund affiliates of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and co-investors.
- Represented Chrysler in its Re-Fuel America incentive card program.
- Represented Travelex as regulatory counsel in its acquisition of Ruesch International.
- Represented Greenhill Capital as regulatory counsel in its acquisition of Trans-Fast Remittance.
- Represented The Western Union Company as regulatory counsel in its spin-off from First Data Corporation.
- Represented ValueLink in prepaid card programs with Burger King and other retailers.
- Ongoing representation and advice for payment processors, hedge funds and other creditors in connection with troubled and insolvent banks and bank holding companies.
- Ongoing representation of banks and program managers in the establishment and maintenance of prepaid card programs.
- Ongoing representation of banks and card processors in consumer credit card compliance matters.
- Ongoing representation of money services businesses in federal and state regulatory compliance matters.
- Represented a group of unregulated private equity funds in acquiring a minority investment in Bank Leumi.
- Represented Integrated Payment Systems in an internet payment services agreement with Sears to offer ServiceLive.
- Represented Aozora Bank in its establishment of a representative office in New York.
- Merger of First Financial Bank, a Georgia credit card bank, with and into Western Union Bank, a Colorado industrial bank.
- Represented Independence Community Bank in mortgage outsourcing to Cendant.
- Represented Western Union Financial Services as regulatory counsel in its acquisition of Vigo Remittance.
- Represented Western Union in its establishment of a New York Article XII Investment Company to hold international banking operations.
- Represented Money Network in its agreement with ADP to offer the ADP Total Paycard.
- Represented First Data as regulatory counsel in its acquisition of Concord EFS, and merger of EFS National Bank with and into a Colorado industrial bank.
- Represented J. Crew Group in a private label credit card program agreement.
- Represented Cache Inc. in a private label credit card program agreement.
- Represented Western Union in a co-branded credit card program agreement.
- Represented Citibank in connection with debit network arrangements with MasterCard.
- Represented Banco Popular in co-brand program credit card agreements.
- Represented CIT in the establishment of an industrial bank in Utah.
- Represented Banco Popular in mortgage outsourcing to Cendant.
- Represented Western Union in formation of internet payments service.
- Represented Dai-ichi Kangyo Bank as regulatory counsel in its merger with IBJ and Fuji to form Mizuho.
- Represented Basin Industrial Bank in its sale of a branch to Dove Creek State Bank.
- Represented Western Union in the acquisition of an industrial bank.
Recognitions
- Chambers FinTech – Band 1
- IFLR1000
- The Legal 500 US
- New York Super Lawyers
Community
- American Bar Association
Credentials
Education
St. John’s University School of Law, JD, cum laude, Notes and Comments Editor, St. John’s Law Review
State University of New York at Stony Brook, BA
Admissions
New York
