Regtech on the rise, Kriptos receives funding for data classification solution

Contxto – Ecuadorian data management startup Kriptos recently wrapped up an investment round for an undisclosed amount. Participants included SixThirty Cyber and prior investors, BuenTrip Ventures, Barclays, Kruger Corporation, and Techstars alongside unnamed angel investors from Latin America and Silicon Valley.

The round is being carried out in a rather more strategic way than through just bog-standard funding. On one hand, of course, it helps to pave the way for Kriptos’ entrance into the United States market. Yet, on the other, through US-based SixThirty Cyber’s tutelage, Kriptos will be mentored for its onward expansion.

But, it is important to note that this isn’t the first international market the Ecuadorian startup has reached. Thanks to its AI-run data classification system, Kriptos has already made itself present in other Latin American countries like Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and Chile.

Let’s talk regtech

Data leaks have bombarded news headings as of late. Doesn’t matter if it’s Cultura Colectiva, Google, Disney+ or Facebook. Everyone’s exposed. Aware of this nightmarish scenario, governments all over the world are holding businesses accountable to protect users’ information and privacy. 

So call in the compliance nerds because this task is going to be troublesome.

To keep data classified and in-check, startups like Kriptos are rapidly emerging and creating regulation technology, or regtech. These solutions help businesses better understand the data they process so they can make more informed security-related decisions.

For example, let’s say a person owns an e-commerce site that sells Avengers collectibles. The website is enabled to register the links a user clicks on, the items saved in their cart, as well as their personal information.

So, for the website owner, it’s important that this information is classified by its level of sensitivity. No one will care much about a data loss about how many Groot plushies were in the user’s cart (O.K., some people might care). But this cannot compare to losing a person’s address or credit card information. Consequently, the owner can plan in advance on how to protect each category of information accordingly.

Investing in regtech

While in Latin America enforcement of privacy and data security might be laxer than say, Europe, startups would be wise to start thinking ahead. Consideration as to how they are protecting their users and their compliance with regulation is paramount. More so, if they plan on flying the Latin American nest someday.

Another recent case of funding for regtech was Qualcomm Ventures investment into Brazilian startup, idwall. So expect to see more of these regtech babies out there and venture funds investing money into them. 

-ML