Universal Partners and ComplyStream Partner to Transform Cross-Border Compliance

London, UK – [29 April 2025] – ComplyStream, a new AI-native RegTech startup, has exited stealth with an oversubscribed pre-seed round led by Cornerstone VC and Ascension, joined by strategic angels from ClearBank, Monzo, Airwallex, Accel Starters and Santander, including notable investors Claire Valoti and Amir Nooriala. Launching with strong market validation, ComplyStream announces its first enterprise partnership with Universal Partners, a leading UK-based cross-border FX provider. 

This isn’t just another RegTech integration. ComplyStream is building the first compliance platform for a post-alert world, where financial institutions are drowning in false positives, siloed systems, and costly manual investigations. While most vendors focus on detecting financial crime, ComplyStream tackles the 95%+ of the operational burden that follows. 

$26.8 Billion Market Opportunity 

The global market for financial crime and compliance technology is projected to reach $26.8 billion by the end of 2025, according to the latest research from Chartis. As regulatory demands grow, many financial institutions remain reliant on outdated systems that are costly, manual, and fragmented. With false positive rates as high as 98% in some institutions, the pressure is on for smarter, AI-driven tools that go beyond detection and streamline the investigation process. ComplyStream’s post-alert automation approach directly addresses this gap, tapping into one of the most urgent and valuable opportunities in enterprise fintech. 

New Benchmark for Financial Crime Risk Management 

Through this strategic partnership, Universal Partners will deploy ComplyStream’s platform to modernise how its compliance teams operate across KYC, AML, and investigations. 

Key outcomes include: 

• KYC refresh automation – Reducing manual reviews and accelerating onboarding 

• AI-powered alert investigation – Prioritising high-risk alerts and slashing false positives 

• Unified compliance data – Connecting fragmented systems into a single intelligent hub 

“The future of FinCrime operations isn’t just about reacting, it’s about staying ahead,” said Oliver Carson, CEO of Universal Partners. “ComplyStream’s AI-powered technology enables our compliance teams to respond faster and with more precision. This partnership sets a new benchmark for financial crime risk management.” 

Founded by Kartik Dabbiru (ex-Wise, BVNK) and Sandi Samantaray (ex-Thredd, RBC, HSBC), ComplyStream was built from scratch in just six months to address the pain they had seen firsthand leading compliance at global fintechs. 

“Everyone talks about detection, but the real cost and complexity in compliance lies in what happens after an alert,” said Kartik Dabbiru, CEO of ComplyStream. “We’re building the first AI-native platform designed to eliminate that friction. This partnership with Universal Partners is just the beginning and a strong signal of how ready the market is for change.” 

With this backing and its first official enterprise partner on board, ComplyStream is poised to lead the next wave of intelligent compliance, helping financial institutions move faster, scale smarter, and reduce risk at every step. 

To learn more about ComplyStream, get in touch here.

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About ComplyStream 

ComplyStream is an AI-native RegTech startup transforming financial crime operations. Built for a post-alert world, our platform eliminates operational friction, automates investigations, and unifies fragmented systems, enabling compliance teams to scale smarter, faster, and with confidence.

About Universal Partners 

Universal Partners is a leading cross-border payments and foreign exchange specialist, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The company serves global  businesses with seamless, secure international payment solutions.