B2B SaaS
Q1 202426.02.2024

Regtech

Picture of Federico Scolari

Federico Scolari

at Sifted

Famously, European lawmakers can’t get enough of thoroughly drafted regulation — and it’s this rulemaking fervour, whether focused on AI, data, digital markets or services, that occasionally puts policymakers in conflict with the tech sphere.

But where there’s obligation, there’s also opportunity — enter regtech startups, which create software to help companies meet compliance. These companies first found gaps to fill at the beginning of Europe’s big fintech wave more than a decade ago. Following the 2008 financial crisis, so-called neobanks came bursting into heavily regulated sectors and needed to be seen as safe and trustworthy — in practice, fully compliant. Startups in fraud prevention, risk management and financial reporting came to the aid of legal teams looking to flexibly adhere to tough, fast-changing rules.

And as new laws for other tech sectors get made, regtechs have started to expand beyond the fintech world; health, e-commerce, enterprise software and energy are only a few examples of markets fit for regtech (although fintech-focused regtechs will probably continue to take the lion’s share of investment).

Despite a testing downturn, regtech has become a real European specialty: a land of regulation will always need startups that love red tape.

20 most promising early-stage startups

  • Salv logo

    Sifted score

    7.81
    -

    Salv

    Specialises in financial crime prevention technology.

    • Strong investor(s)
    • Hiring

    • Year founded

      2018

    • HQ

      Tallinn, Estonia

    • Latest round

      Seed
      €4m / Jan 2023

    • Total funding

      €7.5m

    View company profile
  • Bleckwen logo

    Sifted score

    7.77
    -

    Bleckwen

    Fraud detection for institutions.

    • Strong investor(s)
    • Serial founder(s)

    • Year founded

      2019

    • HQ

      Paris, France

    • Latest round

      Seed
      €9m / Jun 2019

    • Total funding

      €9m

    View company profile
  • TaxDown logo

    Sifted score

    7.7
    -

    TaxDown

    Tax prep for individuals.

    • Strong investor(s)
    • Hiring

    • Year founded

      2019

    • HQ

      Madrid, Spain

    • Latest round

      Seed
      €5.8m / Mar 2023

    • Total funding

      €14.6m

    View company profile
  • Claimer logo

    Sifted score

    7.67
    -

    Claimer

    R&D tax credit claims.

    • Strong investor(s)
    • Serial founder(s)

    • Year founded

      2018

    • HQ

      London, United Kingdom

    • Latest round

      Seed
      €3.8m / Sep 2022

    • Total funding

      €4.1m

    View company profile
  • Fido logo

    Sifted score

    7.5
    -

    Fido

    Fraud prevention platform for online marketplaces.

    • Serial founder(s)
    • Hiring

    • Year founded

      2020

    • HQ

      Milan, Italy

    • Latest round

      Seed
      €5m / Jul 2022

    • Total funding

      €6.2m

    View company profile

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