SteelEye Raises Additional Capital as It Eyes Expansion Into North America
April 07 2021 - 11:00PM
Business Wire
- Expansion will support U.S. firms facing increased regulatory
pressures and meet heightened demand for cloud-based compliance and
regulatory oversight technology.
- COVID-19 crisis has been a major driver behind the move, with
the pandemic inundating compliance teams with investigations and
creating an urgent need to explore new monitoring measures for
regulated employees while working from home.
- $17 million raised in 2020 to support the company’s
growth.
SteelEye, the UK-based compliance technology and data analytics
firm, today announces its plans to bolster its footprint by
expanding into North America.
SteelEye, which has seen rapid growth in Europe since launching
in 2017, delivers a comprehensive SaaS-based regulatory technology
(regtech) platform that allows banks, brokers, and asset managers
to simplify their compliance processes across various EU, UK and
now U.S. market regulations.
The SteelEye platform reduces the complexity and cost of
financial compliance by providing a range of regulatory tools that
support effortless compliance management, allowing compliance teams
to improve efficiencies, reporting accuracy and overall
transparency, all from one platform.
Recognising SteelEye’s unique offering and the regtech market
potential (estimated to reach $21.73 billion by 2027), the business
raised more than $17 million through two funding rounds in 2020.
The first was led by Fidelity International Strategic Ventures
(FISV) alongside existing investor Illuminate Financial. The second
and more recent round was completed in December with U.S. based
investor Beacon Equity Partners leading the round. Ed Mullen,
founder of Beacon, is joining the SteelEye Board of Directors.
Commenting on the announcement, CEO of SteelEye, Matt Smith,
said: “The U.S. and Canadian markets are crying out for a new
way to oversee their conduct and trading activity. Our technology
is a huge opportunity for firms needing to reduce the complexity
and cost of compliance, which in some cases represents as much as
10% of a firm’s noninterest expenses.
“There is a clear demand for technology that improves compliance
accuracy while simplifying processes in the North American market –
SteelEye is the perfect solution to support firms. We are delighted
to be working with Ed and the team at Beacon Equity Partners, whose
expertise in scaling global businesses will be instrumental as we
expand into North America.”
Introduced in 2010 under the Obama administration, the
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
(Dodd-Frank) initiated a variety of additional regulatory
requirements for financial firms to improve accountability and
transparency. Adhering to this legislation more than ten years
after its introduction continues to be a challenge many firms are
seeking to address.
An obvious driver for entering the U.S. market is not only the
growing demand for cloud-based compliance and regulatory oversight
technology, but also the COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic has
inundated compliance teams with investigations and, consequently,
created an urgent need to explore new monitoring measures for
regulated employees to ensure compliance with regulatory
requirements while working from home.
This operational barrier has been compounded further by ongoing
regulatory pressures and soaring trading volumes, intense
volatility, market uncertainty and a large increase in
e-communications caused by the pandemic.
Commenting on the announcement, Ed Mullen, Partner and
Founder of Beacon Equity Partners, said: “SteelEye has a unique
value proposition, combining communications oversight, trade
surveillance and regulatory reporting on a single platform. There
is great potential in the U.S. for a service that simplifies
compliance for financial firms, and we are delighted to support
SteelEye as they enter this market.”
About SteelEye:
At SteelEye, we transform compliance through data innovation –
making data that otherwise wouldn’t work together, work. This
enables financial firms to effortlessly and accurately comply with
a range of regulatory obligations, and ensures regulators have the
data they need to effectively maintain the stability of the
financial markets.
For further information, please visit www.steel-eye.com.
About Beacon Equity
Partners:
Beacon Equity Partners is a private equity firm investing in
innovative software and technology companies. For over a decade we
have helped European companies expand to North America.
Our portfolio companies benefit from our investment, strategic
advice and operational expertise. We aim to generate attractive
investment returns by following a patient and disciplined approach,
employing high-quality people, and pursuing the highest standards
of excellence.
For further information, please visit www.beaconep.com.
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Further information Imogen
Kranz, Senior Consultant SteelEye@boldspace.com