MoloLamken Hires Former Federal Prosecutor Chow as Partner (1)

Anden Chow has joined MoloLamken as a partner in the New York office after serving a decade as an assistant US attorney in Manhattan.

In Chow’s previous role as assistant US attorney for the Southern District of New York, he led the investigation into Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, which resulted in an indictment for sanctions evasion and obstruction of justice.

Chow more recently was involved with the probe of a crypto hedge fund that may soon be charged over bank fraud and money laundering allegations, he said in an interview. He declined to name the company.

Chow, who started with MoloLamken Jan. 9, said he plans to represent heavily regulated industries such as finance, pharmaceutical and import-export companies, as well as crypto companies, which have been hindered, he said, from a lack of regulations.

“I do think regulations will help them get where they want to get,” Chow said of the crypto field.

Lawsuits have been filed in recent months against firms such as Sullivan & Cromwell and Fenwick & West over the kinds of advice they have provided to crypto companies including FTX. Chow said his perspective as a former prosecutor will help him to make sure that his advice to crypto clients is fully above board and that “I won’t lose my way.”

Before he joined the Justice Department in 2014, Chow was an associate for two years with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

He said he was grateful for his time with Skadden but that once he decided to leave the prosecutor’s office and return to a law firm, he only looked at mid-size firms and boutiques like MoloLamken. The firm includes 21 partners and 43 lawyers total, according to the its website.

Smaller firms allow lawyers to take more of a sense of ownership, said Chow, and can aid in fostering a real sense of collegiality. “I wanted to work with fundamentally decent human beings,” he said.

A previous version of this story was produced by Bloomberg Law Automation.