Royds Withy King corporate lawyer Ed Chapman is about to swap Bath for the Big Apple to further develop the firm’s technology offering.
Ed, pictured, flew to New York today after being selected for a pioneering secondment programme which the firm runs in partnership with Interleges, the international legal network it helped create in 1989. 
He will be based in Manhattan with Anderson Kill, a corporate law firm best known for its work in insurance recovery.
During his month at Anderson Kill Ed, who is Royds Withy King’s blockchain lead, will work closely with attorneys and industry experts in its blockchain and virtual currency sector group, focusing on commercial use cases of blockchains in public and private forms along with the regulatory challenges they present.
While blockchain is so far best known as the technology behind the Bitcoin cryptocurrency, blockchain platforms are set to transform a wide variety of industries, with real estate transactions and supply chain management as major use cases.
Ed said: “Last year we had two particular success stories in our technology and financial services sector groups, receiving national coverage in relation to cryptocurrencies and drone law.
“I want to expand on our existing cryptocurrency expertise into the underlying blockchain technology and its applications for us and our clients. In the corporate team at Royds Withy King we already carry out significant cross-border transactional work for our clients, and I see this secondment as a chance to develop our existing capabilities as well as help serve our existing clients, particularly those that operate internationally.
“Blockchain has no borders and a global platform requires a global approach to be able to support and advise our clients and deal with emerging regulatory regimes.
“New York is one of the world’s leading blockchain centres. This is a golden opportunity to spearhead our continued growth and I can’t wait to get started.”
Royds Withy King employs around 520 people providing a comprehensive range of legal services spanning commercial, private client, personal injury and clinical negligence practice areas from its two offices in Bath and bases in London, Oxford, Swindon and Marlborough.
