Charu Chandrasekhar

About Charu Chandrasekhar

Charu A. Chandrasekhar is a litigation partner based in the New York office and a member of the firm’s White Collar & Regulatory Defense and Data Strategy & Security Groups. Ms. Chandrasekhar has significant experience representing global financial institutions, private equity firms, hedge funds, broker-dealers, public companies, and audit and accounting firms in a broad range of securities-related government investigations, examinations, enforcement, and compliance matters. Ms. Chandrasekhar is ranked as a leading lawyer for securities enforcement by Chambers USA (2025), where clients say “Charu is a very strong advisor. She understands the technical aspects of this space and is a great person to work with” and “is extremely responsive and very smart.”She frequently represents clients before the SEC, FINRA, and PCAOB and has defended matters involving allegations of securities fraud, investment adviser and broker-dealer regulations, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, accounting and corporate disclosure issues, and whistleblowers. She also has substantial experience advising investment advisers, broker-dealers, and public companies on artificial intelligence and cybersecurity governance, policies, and procedures.Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Chandrasekhar served as an Assistant Regional Director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement and as the Chief of the Division’s Retail Strategy Task Force. Ms. Chandrasekhar also served as a Senior Advisor and Senior Counsel in the Division of Enforcement’s Market Abuse Unit.During her eight years at the SEC, Ms. Chandrasekhar successfully investigated and brought numerous high-profile enforcement cases, including multiple matters involving cutting-edge and complex practices across the securities markets and federal securities laws. She supervised and participated in investigations involving insider trading by corporate insiders, broker-dealers, and hedge funds; antifraud and regulatory violations by stock exchanges, alternative trading systems, and other trading venues; investment advisers; cybersecurity and digital assets; and market manipulation. Her notable matters included the Commission’s largest settlement against a dark pool; one of the Commission’s largest stock exchange settlements, which involved the Commission’s first-ever charge under Regulation SCI; charges against an underwriter in connection with one of the largest offering frauds involving an international issuer listed on an American securities exchange; and multiple insider trading cases with parallel criminal matters.

Experience

1. Partner

   Debevoise & Plimpton

   Jul 2023 — Present · New York, NY, US

   Charu A. Chandrasekhar is a litigation partner based in the New York office and a member of the firm’s White Collar & Regulatory Defense and Data Strategy & Security Groups. Her practice focuses on securities enforcement and government investigations defense and cybersecurity regulatory counseling and defense.

Education

• Yale University

  B.A.

• Harvard Law School

  J.D.