Bates Group

What Bates Group does

Bates Group is a privately held financial services consulting firm headquartered in Lake Oswego/Portland, Oregon, that has served broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, private funds, banks, money services businesses, fintechs, and insurance carriers for over 40 years. The firm is organized around four core practice areas — BD-RIA Compliance, Data Analytics, Litigation and Regulatory, and Fintech and Banking — and is led by Co-Chief Executive Officers Alex Russell and Rhonda Davis. Its customer base spans regulated financial institutions facing SEC, FINRA, BSA/AML/OFAC, and state regulatory obligations, plus in-house and outside counsel requiring expert witness testimony and litigation consulting. The firm lists 175+ consultants spanning 250+ specialized areas and bills on engagement-based pricing with multi-year contracts.

The firm's core technology consists of proprietary data analytics software centered on "The Bates Report" / Bates Standard Analysis framework, which has been refined over 30+ years and is described as accepted in virtually every major litigation and arbitration forum. Additional proprietary capabilities include an alert evaluation and replication environment for trade surveillance, market abuse detection platforms covering spoofing, layering, wash trades, insider trading, and pump-and-dump schemes, and SOC 2 Type 2 audited infrastructure. Specialized sub-products include Big Data Analytics, Asset Tracing using SAS/Python/PowerBI, Economic Damages quantification, Share Class Disputes Analysis, Market Manipulation Detection, and the Arbitrator Evaluator online tool. In October 2021, Bates acquired CorCom LLC (Spartanburg, SC) to extend its AML compliance, money transmitter licensing, and cryptocurrency/digital asset capabilities.

Bates Group generates revenue through engagement-based professional services including compliance consulting, litigation support, expert witness testimony, data analytics, and regulatory advisory, billed on customized project or retainer terms. The firm does not publicly disclose pricing or revenue. Its go-to-market is sales-led and reputation-driven, with demand generation through content marketing (News & Insights, the annual U.S. Economic and Capital Markets Chartbook), participation in SIFMA AML and NSCP Compliance Labs industry events, an expert search portal, and direct engagement via website inquiry. Geographic presence includes Oregon (headquarters), South Carolina (CorCom), Missouri (St. Louis director), and active East Coast market development. No external institutional investors or funding rounds are evidenced; the company appears to be founder/management-owned with no public listing or secondary transaction history beyond the 2021 CorCom acquisition.

Name

Bates Group

Legal name

Bates Group LLC

Website

https://batesgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Bates Group is a financial services consulting firm providing compliance, litigation, regulatory, and data analytics services to broker-dealers, RIAs, banks, fintechs, MSBs, and insurance carriers. With 175+ experts and proprietary frameworks, the firm has served regulated financial clients for over 40 years.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Services Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

AML/KYC, Investor Onboarding & Compliance Services (FSAAAMAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Regulatory Reporting & Recordkeeping (AML/CTF) (FSAMAMAG)

Keywords

• Financial services consulting
• BSA/AML compliance
• Litigation support services
• Expert witness testimony
• Securities regulatory advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Services Consulting: Bates Group generates revenue through engagement-based professional services including compliance consulting, litigation support, expert witness testimony, data analytics, and regulatory advisory services. Services are billed on a project or retainer basis, typical of professional services firms.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bates Group is a financial services consulting firm that delivers compliance, litigation, regulatory, and data analytics services to broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, banks, fintechs, money services businesses, insurance carriers, and legal counsel. Its work spans BSA/AML/OFAC program development, KYC/CDD/EDD design, transaction monitoring optimization, regulatory exam support, CCO outsourcing, securities litigation consulting, expert witness testimony, economic damages analysis, market manipulation detection, and state money transmitter licensing. Services are delivered by a nationwide roster of 175+ consultants and former regulators using proprietary analytical frameworks including The Bates Standard Analysis and SOC 2-audited data infrastructure.

Product overview

Bates Group is a financial services consulting firm offering end-to-end compliance, litigation, regulatory, and data analytics solutions. The portfolio consists of four core practice areas—BD-RIA Compliance, Data Analytics, Litigation and Regulatory, and Fintech and Banking—supported by specialized sub-products and services including BSA/AML/OFAC Compliance, KYC/CIP/CDD/EDD programs, Transaction Monitoring, Technology and Systems Reviews, State Licensing, Economic Damages, Big Data Analytics, Market Manipulation Detection, Insurance Litigation, Arbitrator Evaluator™, Investment Account Analysis (The Bates Report), Share Class Disputes Analysis, and Asset Tracing. In October 2021, Bates Group acquired CorCom LLC, an AML compliance firm, to strengthen its offerings in AML compliance for fintech, cryptocurrency, and banking sectors. The firm leverages proprietary software and technology for data analytics, market abuse detection, and regulatory compliance services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 95% client satisfaction rate
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CorCom LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 October 2021Bates Group acquired CorCom LLC, an AML compliance firm based in Spartanburg, SC, in October 2021. The acquisition enhances Bates's offerings in AML compliance for fintech, cryptocurrency, and banking sectors across the U.S. This acquisition brought key personnel including Matt Summers (formerly COO at CorCom) who now serves as Managing Director at Bates Group, strengthening the firm's money services business and licensing expertise.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Promontory Financial Group: Direct peer founded in 2001, acquired by IBM in 2014. Provides similar regulatory compliance, risk management, and AML advisory services to banks, broker-dealers, and fintechs. Highly comparable in practice area mix and client base.
• Kroll: Global risk and financial advisory firm offering expert services, investigations, and regulatory compliance consulting. Comparable in expert witness, AML, and forensic accounting offerings serving financial institutions and law firms.
• FTI Consulting: Public global consulting firm with a dedicated Financial Services practice covering regulatory compliance, litigation support, and forensic accounting. Closest large-cap public comparable for Bates's mix of expert witness and regulatory advisory work.
• Alvarez & Marsal: Global professional services firm with deep expertise in financial services consulting, regulatory advisory, and disputes. Overlaps directly with Bates's litigation consulting and forensic accounting services.
• Berkeley Research Group: Expert-driven consulting firm providing expert witness, economic analysis, and regulatory consulting to financial institutions and law firms. Directly comparable in expert testimony and financial services disputes work.
• Cornerstone Research: Specialist economic and financial consulting firm focused on litigation support and expert testimony in securities and financial services matters. Strong overlap in arbitration and expert witness practice.
• Analysis Group: Private economics and financial consulting firm providing expert testimony and analytical support in securities litigation and financial services disputes. Comparable in expert-driven, project-based service model.
• ACA Compliance Group: Specialized consulting firm providing AML, regulatory compliance, and investment adviser oversight services. Directly comparable in core BD-RIA and AML compliance offerings.
• Guidepost Solutions: Consulting firm providing compliance, investigations, and expert witness services to financial institutions and law firms. Overlaps in regulatory consulting and litigation support for financial services clients.

Broad incumbents

• Guidehouse: Large consulting firm (spun out from PwC) with a Financial Services practice covering regulatory compliance, AML, risk management, and forensic services. Operates at broader scale with deeper technology resources but offers overlapping capability sets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@batesgroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bates-group-llc
• Xx.com/BatesGroup

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bates Group