Aarhus startup raises 112 million: Wants to be Europe’s largest

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The strict compliance rules that the EU imposes on private and public institutions have made compliance a complex and time-consuming area of work.

With its solution, the Aarhus-based startup Whistleblower Software has in recent years made it easy for larger companies to establish a whistleblower scheme. Now the Danish startup is launching a platform that can help with multiple areas of compliance. At the same time, the company raises DKK 112 million and changes its name to Formalize.

“With increased information security requirements from the EU, the traditional approach to compliance is no longer sustainable. By automating large parts of the compliance setup, Formalize can help companies ease the work without compromising on security and the ability to customize the platform to the company’s specific needs,” says Jakob Lilholm, co-founder and CEO of Formalize.

Increasing need for compliance tools

The extensive requirements the EU places on private and public institutions restrict organizations from developing their business. That’s why there is a great need for compliance tools like Formalize to facilitate the process.

BlackFin, one of Europe’s largest private equity funds, is the lead investor in the funding round, and they see huge potential in Formalize and the market in general.

Read also: From idea to 100 million in less than two years: For Whistleblower Software, timing was everything

“With compliance requirements being placed on organizations across the EU, the potential for automating compliance processes and reporting is huge. Formalize has proven with their whistleblower platform that they can create a user-friendly and market-leading product that can save businesses resources while meeting compliance regulations,” says Michele Foradori, Investment Director at BlackFin.

Platform automates compliance work

Until now, Formalize has primarily consisted of the whistleblower platform, which in the future will be marketed as “Whistleblower Software by Formalize”. Since the latest investment in November 2022, the company has more than quintupled its revenue and grown from 20 to 90 employees.

Last year, the whistleblowing platform was named the leader of its kind by G2, an international software review platform. It is currently available to more than five million employees worldwide and is offered by over 500 consulting firms, including PwC, Bird&Bird and Baker McKenzie.

Now the company is expanding with a new platform to become Europe’s leading compliance software provider. The new platform streamlines and automates workflows associated with GDPR, NIS2, ISO27001, SOC2 and other regulations.

“We are delighted to have an investor who shares our ambition to become Europe’s leading provider of compliance software. The demand for a tool that can simplify compliance work has never been greater, and it will continue to grow,” says Jakob Lilholm.