Northstar
Northstar is a B2B2E financial wellness platform that sells PEPM subscriptions to employers, pairing employees with fiduciary CFP® advisors for 1-on-1 guidance, benefits decision support, and AI-powered tools across 46 countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersWest Hollywood, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Northstar does
Northstar is a B2B2E financial wellness platform that delivers personalized financial guidance to employees as a subsidized employer benefit. Founded in 2017 by Will Peng and headquartered in New York (operating entity: Northstar Advisory a Nayya Company, LLC), the company pairs each employee with a full-time, fiduciary CFP® advisor who does not sell products or earn commissions, providing unlimited 1-on-1 access via chat, phone, and video alongside personalized action plans, budgeting and retirement tools, and a multi-media education library. The platform is differentiated by a no-product-sales advisory model, integration with employer total-rewards data for benefits decision support, and global reach spanning 46 countries with 16+ languages and 300+ currencies.
The underlying technology combines an AI-powered advisor-matching engine, an AI assistant branded Ask Cosmo built on OpenAI and Anthropic models, and financial account aggregation via Plaid. Following its September 2025 acquisition by Nayya Health, Inc., Northstar was repositioned as the wealth side of a combined health-and-wealth benefits platform and is featured inside Nayya's agentic AI solution, SuperAgent. Investment advisory services are delivered through a wholly-owned, SEC-registered subsidiary, Northstar Investment Advisory, LLC.
Northstar monetizes exclusively on a Per Employee Per Month (PEPM) subscription sold to employers, with a sales-led go-to-market that combines direct enterprise engagement with HR/Benefits teams and a dedicated consultant/broker channel. It serves enterprise customers including Zoom, Snap, Workday, ServiceTitan, Marqeta, NerdWallet, and Superhuman, and reports 46% average employee enrollment, 74% engagement, 99% CSAT, and 94% employer retention since founding. The company has raised approximately $40M across seed, Series A, and follow-on rounds from investors including M13, Foundation Capital, Notable Capital, Parade Ventures, Workday Ventures, PayPal Ventures, and Thomson Reuters Ventures, and has been recognized on the Forbes Fintech 50 (2026) and via its parent on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 (2025).
Northstar firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Northstar
- Legal name
- Northstar Advisory a Nayya Company, LLC
- Website
- https://northstarmoney.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Northstar is a B2B2E financial wellness platform that sells PEPM subscriptions to employers, pairing employees with fiduciary CFP® advisors for 1-on-1 guidance, benefits decision support, and AI-powered tools across 46 countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Northstar industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Employee Financial Wellness Platform
- NAICS
- Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds (5251), Health and Welfare Funds (525120)
- SIC
- Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Employee Financial Wellness Platforms (Workplace PFM) (FSAGADAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Retirement Plan Participant Advice & Managed Accounts (FSAEABAF), Employer Retirement Plan Advisory (401(k)/Pension) (FSAEABAE), Compensation, Benefits & Total Rewards Advisory (BPACAJAG)
Keywords
Where Northstar is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- West Hollywood
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Northstar business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Per Employee Per Month (PEPM) Subscription: Northstar's primary revenue comes from employer subscriptions charged on a per-employee-per-month basis. The company explicitly states 'PEPM is our only revenue source.' Employers pay for access to the financial wellness platform and advisor services for their workforce.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | B2B employer subscription (PEPM) |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
Northstar product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Northstar provides an employer-paid financial wellness benefit platform that delivers unlimited 1-on-1 access to full-time CFP® financial advisors via chat, phone, and video, combined with self-service planning tools and a multimedia education library. The platform ingests employer benefits and uses AI-powered matching (including the Ask Cosmo assistant) to generate personalized action plans covering budgeting, debt payoff, retirement planning, and benefits decisions, available across 46 countries. Employers subscribe on a per-employee-per-month (PEPM) basis, which is Northstar's sole revenue source.
Product overview
Northstar is a unified financial wellness platform provided as an employee benefit through employers. The platform combines three core product components: (1) Financial Advisors (CFP®) providing 1-on-1 personalized guidance via chat, phone, and video; (2) Financial Tools for budgeting, savings, and retirement planning; and (3) Financial Education including webinars, articles, and multi-media resources. The platform integrates benefits decision support and global coverage across 46 countries. Northstar also offers an AI-powered assistant called 'Ask Cosmo' for automated support. The company operates as a subsidiary of Nayya Health, Inc., with its SEC-registered investment advisory services provided through Northstar Investment Advisory, LLC.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Financial Advisors (CFP®) Unlimited 1-on-1 access to full-time, fiduciary CFP® financial advisors delivered via chat, phone, and video. Provides personalized financial guidance, custom action plans, and holistic advice across budgeting, taxes, debt payoff, retirement, investments, and benefits decisions for employees accessing the service through their employer.
- Financial Tools Self-service planning tools that help employees track progress and take action on financial goals, including budgeting tools, savings targets, and retirement planning, integrated with employer benefits.
- Financial Education Multi-media educational resources developed by Northstar Advisors (CFP®) covering debt payoff, taxes, family planning, investing, emergency savings, home buying, and related topics; delivered through live monthly webinars, articles, FAQs, and pre-recorded videos.
- Ask Cosmo (AI Assistant) An AI-powered conversational assistant that provides automated, on-demand responses to employee financial questions, powered by large language models from OpenAI and Anthropic. AI-generated responses may not always be accurate or constitute financial advice.
- Benefits Decision Support Personalized guidance on employer benefits, helping employees make informed selections during open enrollment and throughout employment by integrating with employer total rewards data to deliver actionable advice.
- Global Financial Wellness Financial wellness support delivered across 46 countries with local or regional financial advisors; localization covers local regulations, cultures, 300+ currencies, and benefits; advisors speak 16+ languages and hold CFP® or local equivalents.
Quantifiable outcome
- 94% of employees reported an increase in financial confidence
- +10 more outcomes
Companies that use Northstar
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Northstar technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability4 records
Feature4 records
Northstar partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- PlaidcoreFinancial data platform used by Northstar to securely access and aggregate users' financial account information (balances, transactions) from connected financial institutions. Users grant Northstar and Plaid the right to access and transmit their financial information.
- OpenAIcoreAI technology provider enabling certain AI-powered functionality in Northstar's services, including AI advisor features. Northstar partners with OpenAI to power conversational AI capabilities.
- AnthropiccoreAI safety and research company providing AI technology for Northstar's AI-powered services. Partnership enables enhanced AI functionality while maintaining data privacy commitments.
- NayyaflagshipNayya acquired Northstar in September 2025 to create a unified platform for employee benefits combining health and wealth AI advisory services. Northstar is now 'a Nayya Company' offering combined financial wellness and health benefits guidance through an agentic AI solution called SuperAgent.
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Northstar competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- LearnLux: LearnLux is a workplace financial wellness platform offering 1-on-1 advisor access and benefits decision support to employees via employer sponsorship. It is one of Northstar's closest head-to-head competitors in the employer PFM category.
- Origin (formerly known as Origin Financial): Origin is a workplace financial wellness platform that provides personalized financial planning, savings, and investing tools to employees through employer benefits. It competes directly with Northstar on B2B2E distribution and digital-first advisor services.
- Brightside Financial: Brightside is an employer-sponsored financial wellness platform combining AI-driven guidance with human financial planners. It is directly comparable to Northstar in targeting mid-market and enterprise employers with benefits-integrated advice.
- SmartDollar by Ramsey Solutions: SmartDollar is an employer-paid financial wellness program built around budgeting, debt payoff, and retirement content. It competes with Northstar in the workplace PFM category, though with a more education-led rather than advisor-led delivery model.
- Financial Finesse: Financial Finesse provides employer-sponsored financial coaching, education, and planning via CFP® professionals. It competes directly with Northstar on the human-advisor workplace wellness value proposition and enterprise buyer segment.
Broad incumbents
- Edelman Financial Engines: Edelman Financial Engines is one of the largest US workplace financial advice and managed-account providers, bundled with 401(k) plans. It overlaps with Northstar's employer retirement advisory and participant advice offerings but operates at much greater scale.
- Ayco (Goldman Sachs): Ayco, a Goldman Sachs company, delivers workplace financial counseling to corporate employees, especially for equity compensation and executive benefits. It overlaps with Northstar's comp and benefits decision support for enterprise workforces.
- Morgan Stanley at Work: Morgan Stanley at Work provides stock plan administration, financial wellness, and retirement solutions to corporate employers. It is a broad incumbent competitor in the workplace financial wellness category, leveraging Morgan Stanley's wealth management infrastructure.
- Voya Financial (Workplace Solutions): Voya is a large retirement, investment, and employee benefits provider offering financial wellness to employer plan participants. It competes broadly with Northstar on employer-sponsored retirement advice and benefits education.
Others
- Nayya: Nayya is the parent company that acquired Northstar in September 2025 and the operator of the combined SuperAgent health-and-wealth benefits AI platform. Listed as a peer because Nayya's benefits-guidance offering is now intertwined with Northstar's financial wellness product.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights1 record
Customer concentration
Northstar social profiles
Digital presenceNorthstar compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Northstar financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Northstar leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Northstar subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Northstar funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors18 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Northstar M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Northstar
What does Northstar do?
Northstar provides an employer-paid financial wellness benefit platform that delivers unlimited 1-on-1 access to full-time CFP® financial advisors via chat, phone, and video, combined with self-service planning tools and a multimedia education library. The platform ingests employer benefits and uses AI-powered matching (including the Ask Cosmo assistant) to generate personalized action plans covering budgeting, debt payoff, retirement planning, and benefits decisions, available across 46 countries. Employers subscribe on a per-employee-per-month (PEPM) basis, which is Northstar's sole revenue source.
Is Northstar a public or private company?
Northstar is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Northstar founded?
Northstar was founded in 2017. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Northstar based?
Northstar is headquartered in West Hollywood, United States, in the North America region.
How does Northstar make money?
One revenue line is on record: per Employee Per Month (PEPM) Subscription.
Who are Northstar's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are LearnLux, Origin (formerly known as Origin Financial), Brightside Financial, SmartDollar by Ramsey Solutions and Financial Finesse. Broad incumbents are Edelman Financial Engines, Ayco (Goldman Sachs), Morgan Stanley at Work and Voya Financial (Workplace Solutions). Nayya is listed as an others.
Does Northstar have an API?
No public API is recorded for Northstar.
What industry is Northstar in?
Northstar's product category is Employee Financial Wellness Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGADAK, Employee Financial Wellness Platforms (Workplace PFM), with a secondary code of FSAEABAF, Retirement Plan Participant Advice & Managed Accounts. Its NAICS code is 5251 and its SIC code is 6411.