If you’re building a fintech, there’s a lie you’ve probably been sold: “Ship features fast now; bolt on compliance later.” That’s how teams end up pausing roadmaps to retrofit controls under duress, usually after the first bank partner asks a hard question or a regulator’s letter lands.
The data isn’t subtle. A recent study showed virtually all financial institutions saw financial crime compliance costs increase year‑over‑year. At the same time, regulators continued to levy multi‑billion‑dollar penalties globally for AML failures, a costly reminder that reactive programs are slow and expensive programs.
Here’s the contrarian move: treat AML like a product surface, a customer facing capability you ship early because it makes you faster.
Speed vs. compliance is a false choice
Traditional deployments teach founders to think in quarters. Public timelines from other providers place transaction monitoring at 6-10 weeks and full‑suite deployments at 12-16 weeks. That’s a whole roadmap. By contrast, the Flagright Startup Program is designed for two‑week go‑lives with an API‑first integration path, so you’re shipping with risk controls by default, not in a scramble.
What you actually need in months 0-24
In the first two years, you don’t need sprawling GRC bureaucracy. You need a centralized AML stack that covers the critical path:
- AML Screening at onboarding and continuously.
- Transaction Monitoring with a scenario builder your engineers don’t have to babysit.
- Risk Scoring (customers & transactions) to route attention intelligently.
- Case Management that investigators actually want to use.
That’s exactly what the Flagright Startup Program includes from day one, not a teaser, not a pared‑down “starter” SKU.
Predictable runway beats “free”
Some vendors popularized “free” startup programs. Free is a great headline, until you count engineering time, missing controls, or the day you need to upgrade. We’ve taken a different path: 60% off in Year 1, 30% off in Year 2, unlimited seats, cancel anytime. It’s designed for runway‑stage teams who value predictable cost and full capability over trialware. Pair that with 99.99% uptime (public Status) so your compliance operations don’t become your next outage.
Founder‑grade reliability (and receipts)
“Within a week, we had Flagright’s systems up and running… I can’t see anything else right now that gives you as big an impact.” - Ian Njuguna, Co‑Founder & CTO
“From transaction monitoring to quality assurance, AI Forensics has transformed how we approach compliance.” - Dustin Eaton, Head of Risk & Compliance
Real teams are seeing reduced friction, fewer manual hours, and better regulatory scores after go‑live. You can read those stories, with numbers on our page.
Your four‑step path (simple by design)
- Apply: quick form, basic eligibility (≤5 years since incorporation; ≤$2M annual revenue; ≤30 FTE; etc.).
- Eligibility screening: we confirm eligibility.
- Integration: 2 weeks with assisted onboarding and preconfigured templates.
- Go live and keep moving; our team stays engaged in your first 30 days.
Why this matters now
Regulators increasingly expect ongoing, real‑time monitoring. AI‑assisted analytics aren’t “nice to have”; they’re how you scale reviews, reduce noise, and strengthen suspicious‑activity reporting without throwing people at the problem. Building that posture early isn’t just safer, it’s how you keep shipping.
Pricing that grows with you
- Year 1: 60% discount, unlimited seats, all core modules.
- Year 2: 30% discount, unlimited seats, same breadth.
- Year 3: Graduate to standard pricing based on your actual volumes; pick exactly the modules you need.
- No hidden fees unless you exceed the annual transaction limits (clearly stated in the FAQ).
If you’re a founder who wants to move faster and sleep at night, apply to the Flagright Startup Program.
