By Andres Gonzalez
LONDON (Reuters) - A group of five banks including JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM), Citi and BNP Paribas (OTC:BNPQY) are among the investors who backed an overall $24 million fundraising for risk control specialist Acin as part of their strategy to step up their risk expertise.
The investment, which was also backed by Barclays (LON:BARC) and Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY), will help Acin accelerate its strategic product development in partnership with investors and existing clients.
Global banks are facing increasing regulatory pressure over their capital allocation strategy as well as their climate change vulnerabilities and are increasingly turning to fintechs to strike strategic alliances to avoid falling short on risk data.
"We have been working with Acin for the past three years, during which they have supported our established operational risk management and assessment practices," said Julian Liau, Chief Controls Manager at JPMorgan.
The company, founded in 2017 by Paul Ford, former Chief Operating Officer at Barclays Wealth and Investment Management, raised $12 million in 2020 in a round led by Notion Capital with participation from Fitch Ventures and other individual investors.
Both Notion Capital and Fitch Ventures backed Acin in the last fundraising.
Acin helps financial institutions digitise their operational and non-financial risk analysis, using its data analytic capabilities.
Acin was advised by fintech-focused investment bank Zelig and law firm Withers.