Michael Garellek

About

Michael serves as the head of the Financial Services Regulatory Practice for Canada and is a Transactional Partner in Baker McKenzie's Toronto office. His practice focuses on Canadian financial regulation and compliance for fintechs, financial institutions and financial market participants, online marketplaces, blockchain and web3 devs. Michael has assisted many global companies establish and grow their businesses in Canada.

He is a co-author of Baker McKenzie's Doing Business in Canada, the Annotated Bank Act (2025-2023 editions) and the Jurisclasseur en valeurs mobilieres, a long leading treatise on securities laws in Canada.

Roles

Dec 2022–Present

Current role

Partner - Head of the Financial Services Regulatory Practice for Canada

Baker McKenzie LLP

Toronto, Canada

AttorneyAttorney AdvisorLegalFinance

Michael's transactional and advisory work covers a variety of deal types both public and private, including financing and securitization. Michael provides regulatory guidance and best practice to financial industry firms and their representatives as well as, to online marketplace and web3 gaming platforms in Canada. Michael’s specialized practice areas cover legal issues, including those relating to insurance, banking, AML/FT, privacy, securities and OTC swaps and derivatives, among others. This includes critical questions on entity formation, governance and structure. In the areas of payments, securities, banking and insurance, Michael will assist you to make the required applications to Canadian regulators.

May 2009–Nov 2022

Former role

Partner - Lead of the Financial Regulatory Group

Gowling WLG (Canada)

Montreal, Canada

AttorneyCivil LitigationMergers and AcquisitionComplianceLegalCorporate LawFinance

Practice within the business law group, with a developing emphasis on corporate law, governance, finance, mergers and acquisitions, greenhouse gas regulations, and transactions on carbon markets.
Practice within the litigation group, specializing in particular in securities litigation, regulation and compliance.

Jan 2005–May 2009

Former role

Securities Examiner - AMF

Autorité des marchés financiers (Québec)

(appointed)Canada

AuditingAttorney AdvisorExaminer

Responsibilities:

Conducted inspections of investment advisors, private equity funds, stock brokers, mutual fund dealers and other distributors of financial products to ensure they comply with securities legislation.
Planned engagements in detail including approach, procedures and audit programs.
Team leader for the inspection of hedge funds and other alternative investment products.
Acted as a key contact for exchanges of information with inspectors from other securities administrators in Canada.
Formally reported and presented results in both English and French.
Issued recommendations of courses of action to be taken when my findings showed a deficiency with regards to the law.

May 1999–Jan 2005

Former role

Audit Professional

Office of the Auditor General of Canada

(appointed)Canada

AuditingFederal GovernmentFinance

Responsibilities:

Conducted financial attest audits on crown corporations, agencies and departments of the Canadian federal government as well as, the United Nations.
Planned engagements in detail including audit approach, procedures and audit programs and staffing.
Performed legislative auditing to ensure that entities comply with their enabling legislation.
Assumed a project leader role on assignments, and supervised junior staff and contract workers.
Participated in the professional development program at the office which included many accounting and interpersonal skills courses.
Completed 150 hours of income tax experience at a professional accounting firm.
Helped write and translate audit committee and management letters from French to English.

Jun 1996–May 1999

Former role

Account Analyst

McGill University

Montreal, Canada

Accounting

Responsibilities:
Performed a wide range of duties, including reconciliation and analysis of general ledger accounts, cash flow analysis, accounts payable, month-end closing and preparation of year-end working papers for the auditors. Completed a special project for the McGill Bookstore to evaluate their supplier credits. This information was used in the acquisition of the Bookstore by Chapters inc.

Representative matters

Experience

September 2025

-Applications to payments and securities regulatory relating to crypto asset trading platforms, fractional trading of securities and insurance distribution models. -Provided legal opinions on payments activities, AML/FT and foreign asset control rules and compliance to money transmitter, travel and integrated marketplaces. -Represented e-gaming companies regarding gaming, payments and securities laws as they apply to loot boxes and in-game awards and gifts. -Advised an affinity marketing company on the application of securities laws to their digital awards programs. -Acted for a DeFi protocol on the application of securities and AML laws to the locking of tokens using smart contracts. -Represented several consumer lenders (BNPL, payday lending, factoring) regarding licensing and disclosure requirements. -Acted for the Banque Transatlantique, Credit Mutuel/CIC and the BMCE Bank in the opening of their foreign bank representative offices. -Acted for TradeZero Canada Securities ULC for its licensing as a securities dealer and membership with the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO). -Acted for State Farm in its CAD 1.6 billion sale of its Canadian insurance and related financial services businesses to the Desjardins Group, and the related CAD 450 million investment by State Farm in the insurance operating companies of the Desjardins Group. -Assisted a financial institution in its settlement with regulators related to the fallout from the global financial crisis and the investigations into the Canadian Asset-Backed Commercial Paper market.

Recognition

Honors

Recognized

The Best Lawyers in Canada

September 2025

Leveraged Buyouts and Private Equity Law

Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory

Lexpert

February 2024

Recognized - Insurance

The Legal 500 Canada Next Generation Partner

September 2025

Publications & speeches

International: The ISDA Notices Hub has been launched

Baker McKenzie InsightPlus

August 2025

On 16 July 2025, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association ("ISDA") launched the ISDA Notices Hub and the ISDA 2025 Notices Hub Protocol ("Notices Hub Protocol"). ISDA and S&P Global have developed the ISDA Notices Hub to address the challenges of effectively delivering notices under the ISDA Master Agreement. Issues can arise where an ISDA Master Agreement contains out-of-date address details for a party or if circumstances prevent the physical delivery of notices. Lockdowns, war conditions and recent market volatility have highlighted the risks that parties face in relying on physical methods to deliver critical notices in a timely fashion. The ISDA Notices Hub provides a solution to these issues, enabling matched counterparties to instantly deliver and receive termination-related notices from a secure online platform.

Link

International: Insights from the ISDA AGM Amsterdam 2025

Baker McKenzie InsightPlus

May 2025

On 13-15 May 2025, the swaps and derivatives industry gathered in Amsterdam for the 39th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA). Celebrating 40 years since the establishment of ISDA in 1985, it was a time to reflect on the achievements of ISDA to date and how its commitment to standardization has developed safe, efficient and liquid markets. The AGM also focused on how ISDA standards would continue to assist the industry in meeting the challenges ahead and how those standards would bring digitization and automation to industry processes.

Link