Christopher Farmer
Legal & Compliance Professional
Profile
Legal and compliance professional with an LL.M. in Legal Practice (International Law) and 8+ years of hands-on experience building governance frameworks, managing regulatory compliance programmes, and mitigating risk across multi-site operations. Combines legal expertise with technical fluency to audit systems, interpret regulatory data, and bridge the gap between compliance teams and engineering. Targeting compliance officer and GRC roles in FINMA-regulated environments in Switzerland.
Regulatory & Compliance Expertise
Governance & Risk
- Policy architecture and "compliance by default" programmes
- 100% audit pass rates across 8 operational sites
- Risk register management, control mapping, gap analysis
- Board-level governance advisory and trustee oversight
Data Protection & Privacy
- GDPR/UK DPA: DPIAs, SARs, breach protocols
- FADP (Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection) awareness
- Cross-border data transfer compliance
AML & Financial Regulation
- AML/CFT concepts, KYC/CDD procedures
- Swiss AML Act (AMLA) and FINMA circular awareness
- FCPA/PEP controls, cross-border FDI restrictions
- Charities SORP/FRS 102, grant compliance
Contract & Dispute Management
- Contract lifecycle management: drafting, negotiation, enforcement
- £70K+ damages mitigated through early-stage dispute resolution
- £500K+ public/lottery funding secured and managed
Professional Experience
Director / Head of Legal & Compliance
Red Spark Learning C.I.C. — Herefordshire, UKEducational CIC operating 8+ locations, 15 staff, serving vulnerable adult learners. Largest regional adult learning provider outside universities.
- Owned complete policy suite: governance, HR, safeguarding, data protection, funding compliance
- Established "compliance by default" culture across all sites — 100% audit pass rates
- GDPR programme ownership: DPIAs, SAR management, zero reportable data breaches
- Secured and managed £500K+ in public and lottery funding with full regulatory accountability
- Led COVID-19 digital pivot: paper to Moodle across 8 sites, 30% cost reduction
- Employment law: HR administration, grievance procedures, dispute resolution (£70K+ damages mitigated)
Assistant to Director / Business Development
Red Spark Learning C.I.C. — Herefordshire, UKConsultant: Legal, Compliance & Strategic Advisory
Keystone Analytics — Remote (Project-Based)Cross-border advisory for multinational enterprise with US parent, Philippine fintech arm, and service subsidiaries.
- Navigated complex cross-border regulatory requirements: FDI restrictions, FCPA/PEP controls
- Strategic turnaround: remedied major financial loss within 3 months via funding pivot and cost controls
- VC consulting targeting $2M+ for public-private solar joint venture
- Compliance frameworks for humanitarian enterprises including SaaS dispatch application
- Regulatory monitoring and risk framework design using Python/API automation tools
- Legal structuring, contract compliance, and HR strategy for Philippine entity
Board Member / Trustee
HVOSS — UK- Non-executive governance during scale-up: income £590K to £934K
- Steered through consecutive deficit years with cash-first oversight
- Charities SORP/FRS 102 and Companies Act compliance
Education
LL.M. Legal Practice (Honours)
2022 – 2024International Law, treaty interpretation, commercial contracts.
Dissertation: “Economic and Cyber Warfare: The Unregulated War” — 100% marks, four doctoral research offers.
B.A. (Hons) Politics, Philosophy and Economics
2016 – 2020Economics major.