Featured in our GC Spotlight Series this month is Cora Ang, the Head of Legal & Compliance, APAC at AMINA Group. At AMINA, Cora is responsible for all legal and compliance operations across the Asia-Pacific region, ensuring the company can effectively navigate complex regulatory frameworks and uphold the highest standards of practice. Her role involves providing strategic legal guidance on a multitude of issues including new product development and market entry, particularly concerning digital assets and decentralised finance.
Before joining AMINA, Cora was a Partner at HM, a boutique consultancy in Singapore. In her role, she helped businesses align their strategies with regulatory frameworks, particularly in sustainability, fintech, and digital assets. Prior to that, she served as General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer at a multi-strategy hedge fund. Her career also spans legal and compliance roles at Hillhouse Group, Sidley Austin, Clifford Chance, and J.P. Morgan. She has earned recognition in the Legal 500 GC Powerlist – Hong Kong in 2023, 2024 and 2025. With a strong focus on the intersection of finance, regulatory compliance, and innovation, Cora actively contributes to the responsible adoption of Web3 technologies, supports regulatory clarity for the digital assets ecosystem, and engages in shaping policies that influence the future of decentralised finance.
Cora is a New York-qualified lawyer with an LL.M. from the University of Pennsylvania, a Juris Doctor from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago. She is also a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist and an active member of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors.
1. Hi Cora, can you tell us a little about your role and journey into law? What excites you outside of work?
My current role is Head of Legal and Compliance APAC for AMINA Bank, based in Hong Kong. After I graduated from The University of Chicago, I made the move from my hometown of Singapore to Hong Kong for an opportunity in capital markets as a paralegal at a US law firm. Eventually, I pursued my law degree and qualified in New York before returning to capital markets private practice in Hong Kong and Singapore. In 2017, my transition in-house pivoted me to private equity and gave me exposure to the field of compliance, which led to a GC position at a multi-strategy hedge fund. After a short stint as a consultant working with Fintech and Web3 companies, I found myself at Amina Hong Kong, bridging TradFi principles in the Defi world and pushing the boundaries in all aspects of the digital asset evolution. Outside of work, I love spending time in nature and challenging myself by running ultramarathons. We are lucky to have so many trails at our doorstep in Hong Kong!
2. As a Head of Legal & Compliance, what are some of the challenges that keep you up at night? How are you addressing them?
In the dynamic sector of digital assets, there are many moving pieces – legal regimes are constantly undergoing regulatory iterations. This makes it challenging to provide straightforward legal advice to our business. This means it’s important to adopt an agile approach and stay aware of the latest regulatory developments that may affect the business either in risks or opportunities, especially when we operate globally and engage in cross-border activities. I always make sure to find time to participate in roundtable discussions, forums, and thought leadership events to ensure that I am continuing to educate myself with any key updates and also canvass for important industry initiatives.
3. What do you think about the use of LegalTech, data analytics and process optimisation to improve your legal department’s value?
Given we have a lean team across multiple time zones, we’re always looking for efficiencies where we can derive greater value. Leveraging the tools of LegalTech, data analytics and process optimisation can essentially aid the legal team in freeing up more time to focus on supporting other functions more strategically. An in-house legal department is always perceived as a cost center, but technology solutions can help position us as a value driver for the business.
4. What trends do you expect to see in the legal services industry in the next 5 years?
I foresee a focus on “Glo-cal” amid rising geopolitical volatility and complex cross border regulations. Companies increasingly need a legal team that combines deep local expertise with global collaboration. This means navigating jurisdiction-specific laws and cultures, managing multi-jurisdictional strategies, anticipating geopolitical risks, and leveraging technology for efficient collaboration. Competitive advantage will favour those who integrate local insights and global reach into a unified, agile legal approach.
I also anticipate a surge in AI-driven legal services. The conversation around applying generative AI in legal work and its ethical considerations continues. It is likely that there will be a transition from experimental pilots to fully integrated components of legal workflows, which I believe will impact nearly every area of practice.
5. Where do you see NewLaw/ALSP fitting in the matrix of your legal department
NewLaw/ALSP provides an advantage in filling capability gaps, increasing agility, and enabling the function to deliver more value with greater budget discipline – especially for lean legal teams like mine.
6. What’s your favourite tune and why?
Conquest of Paradise by Vangelis. I’m always inspired by epic music and this song was what was playing when I was standing at the start line of the Ultra-Trail Mont Blanc – which was a very poignant moment for me!
KorumLegal is a boutique legal consultancy committed to providing value innovation in legal service delivery. The legal services industry is continuing to change with ‘NewLaw’ – and clients are seeking more innovative and cost-effective solutions without compromise on experience and quality
