Baker McKenzie Germany Joins the Tech & Data Lab Frankfurt

Building the Framework to Test Boldly

Baker McKenzie Germany joined TechQuartier’s Tech & Data Lab Frankfurt, bringing legal and regulatory expertise directly into an environment designed for financial institutions, startups and technology providers to test new technologies under real-world conditions. 

By embedding legal and regulatory considerations from the outset, the Tech & Data Lab helps participants explore new solutions with a clearer understanding of the frameworks that shape their implementation in regulated financial services.

The guiding principle is simple: Test Boldly. Because bold experimentation works best when it is grounded in real-world requirements from the start.

Making experimentation possible

The Tech & Data Lab provides financial institutions, startups and technology providers with a dedicated environment to explore emerging technologies, test concrete use cases and assess their potential under real-world conditions.

In financial services, however, successful innovation depends on more than technical performance alone. Questions around data use, artificial intelligence, financial regulation, intellectual property, contracts and liability can all influence whether a promising solution can move from pilot to implementation.

For this reason, legal and regulatory considerations have been integrated into the Tech & Data Lab’s development from the outset. Baker McKenzie has supported TechQuartier in shaping the framework for collaboration, from partner participation and the use of technology and data within the testing environment to the structures that enable different organizations to work together with greater clarity and confidence.

By bringing these considerations into the innovation process early, the Tech & Data Lab is designed to help participants test ambitious ideas while remaining connected to the practical requirements of regulated financial services.

“Legal should not be the final checkpoint in innovation, but part of the process from the start. By bringing our legal and regulatory perspective into the Tech & Data Lab, we want to help create the right environment to test bold ideas and turn them into viable solutions,” says Patrick Wilkening, Partner at Baker McKenzie who worked on the project together with Yannick Filoda.

From legal checkpoint to part of the innovation process

Traditionally, legal and regulatory questions can appear late in the innovation process once a technology has already been selected or a pilot designed. The Tech & Data Lab takes a different approach.

By bringing technology, business, data and legal perspectives together earlier, potential barriers can be identified while ideas are still being tested and adapted. 

For financial institutions, this can mean greater clarity around whether a technology can operate within their legal and regulatory requirements before moving toward implementation.

For startups, it creates an opportunity to encounter the questions that enterprise customers will eventually ask around areas such as data, AI, IP, contracts and liability earlier in their development. 

“Testing boldly means understanding early what it takes to put an idea into practice. Baker McKenzie helps our participants address legal and regulatory questions while they still have room to adapt," says Carina Sauerwein, Head of Innovation Products at TechQuartier.

With Baker McKenzie contributing its legal and regulatory perspective, the Tech & Data Lab strengthens its role as a space where innovation can be explored in a practical, collaborative and market-relevant way.

Together, TechQuartier and its partners are creating the conditions for financial institutions, startups and technology providers to move from ideas to informed experimentation and from experimentation toward scalable solutions.

For the Tech & Data Lab, that is what Test Boldly means: Bringing the right expertise, infrastructure and partners together to turn emerging technologies into real-world opportunities.

About Baker McKenzie

Baker McKenzie empowers clients to compete in the global economy. We provide comprehensive and practical legal advice that cuts through complexity with clear, actionable guidance. Our people represent diverse cultures and jurisdictions, combining local knowhow with international expertise to ensure that your business thrives across borders. www.bakermckenzie.com