Steward, an AI-driven compliance platform focused on investor onboarding, has raised $5 million in funding to modernize AML and KYC processes for financial institutions.
The round was led by Motive Partners, with participation from Outward VC, Cooley, and a group of fintech founders and operators. Steward is already used by firms responsible for managing more than $100 billion in investor assets.
Tackling Complexity In Investor Onboarding
Onboarding sophisticated investors remains one of the most challenging operational tasks in financial services. Complex ownership structures, cross-border entities, and layered documentation requirements often result in lengthy manual processes, email chains, and repeated compliance reviews.
These inefficiencies can delay deals, increase operational costs, and create friction for both firms and investors.
Steward focuses on these high-complexity cases, targeting segments such as private markets funds, banks, brokers, and asset managers that regularly deal with institutional investors.
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AI Platform For AML And KYC Automation
The company’s platform uses artificial intelligence to automate key compliance workflows, including document collection, identity verification, risk assessment, and ongoing monitoring.
Instead of relying on fragmented tools, Steward brings these processes into a single system designed to handle complex investor structures.
The platform also introduces reusable investor profiles that can be securely shared between counterparties, reducing duplication and speeding up onboarding across multiple transactions.
According to the company, its system enables same-day onboarding in the majority of cases, even for complex investor profiles.
Supporting Faster And More Scalable Compliance
By automating manual compliance processes, Steward aims to help financial institutions scale operations without increasing headcount.
The platform is designed to reduce onboarding delays while maintaining regulatory standards, allowing firms to process more investors efficiently and improve the overall experience.
Early users include venture capital firms, asset managers, and institutional investors that require fast and compliant onboarding processes.
Experienced Founding Team
Steward was founded by Arik Oslerne and Moshe Lieberman, both of whom bring experience from scaling fintech platforms.
Oslerne previously worked at Vauban, a platform focused on private market infrastructure, while Lieberman was an early team member at Lemonade and Fiverr, contributing to the development of software-driven financial and marketplace platforms.
The company operates from offices in New York and London.
About Steward
Steward is an AI-powered compliance platform designed to automate investor onboarding and monitoring. The system helps financial institutions manage AML and KYC processes more efficiently by combining data collection, verification, and risk analysis into a unified workflow.
