Chris Ford has led some of the country's largest and most innovative Fintech and payment systems transactions. Chris advises clients—among them Fortune 100 companies, merchants, and financial institutions—on large-scale commercial transactions, particularly those involving financial services, payments, technology, and outsourcing.

Chris has more than 20 years of experience representing financial services companies in transactions. He understands the commercial issues they face and can assist them in integrating new technologies into their business environments. He provides strategic counsel to financial institutions and other credit facilities in their card processing and network-related deals and to merchants in their merchant-acquiring, co-brand, and private-label card transactions. 

Chris also is a leader in the area of information technology and business process outsourcing. He represented a state government in landmark, billion-dollar IT infrastructure and network management outsourcing transactions with global business technology and communications services providers. He advised a major industrial manufacturing company in its IT infrastructure transactions and a leading pharmaceuticals and health information technology corporation in its global finance and accounting outsourcing arrangement. He also represented a Fortune 100 retailer in several of its major sourcing transactions, including a global information technology deal and the outsourcing of its Canadian warehousing and logistics operation.

Representative Matters

His work includes:

• Representing one of the world's largest financial institutions in its global, retail, commercial, and small business credit card processing agreements

• Assisting a global finance company in the issuance of a credit card in the United States, including all of the associated ancillary agreements, such as the processing and managed services agreement

• Counseling one of the largest merchant-acquiring companies in a strategic partnering and processing arrangement with a major credit card issuer.

• Advising a global bank in its debit card processing and ATM Network management deal

• Representing a major grocery retailer in its merchant acquiring and payment processing arrangements

PROFESSIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

Professional Activities

Chair, Morrison & Foerster's Global Sourcing Group

Recognitions & Accomplishments

Chambers Global, U.S. Outsourcing, Band 2, 2018

Chambers USA, Technology and Outsourcing (D.C.), Band 1; Outsourcing (National), Band 2, 2018

The Best Lawyers in America, Information Technology Law and Technology Law, 2018

The Legal 500 US, outsourcing, Tier 2, 2016-2018

Named 2018 Most Influential Lawyer by Savoy Magazine

Named 2013 fellow with the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity

EDUCATION

Emory University School of Law (J.D. 1993)

University of Virginia (B.S. 1987)

ADMISSIONS

District of Columbia