VIGILANT: COMPLIANCE SIMPLIFIED INC.

What VIGILANT: COMPLIANCE SIMPLIFIED INC. does

Vigilant: Compliance Simplified, Inc. (operating as VigilantCS) is an Ottawa-based private SaaS company that provides a cloud-based staff compliance platform to Canadian financial services firms regulated under IIROC, MFDA, provincial securities commissions, and Life and Health Insurance regimes. Founded in December 2016 by former regulator/CCO Robert Kirwin and IT/security executive Geoffrey Pille, the company builds workflow automation and conduct risk analytics tools that consolidate employee compliance data — including disclosures, continuing education, personal trading, gifts and entertainment, attestations, social media declarations, and compliance calendars — into a single digital hub for compliance officers and supervisors.

The platform is organized around three core products: VCS (RCM) for regulatory requirements management, VCSOpen+ (available in Securities and Insurance variants) which integrates eight compliance capabilities into a centralized staff-facing portal, and VCSPro (rebranded as VEC in late 2024), an AI/ML-driven conduct risk analytics add-on that applies a behavioral algorithm informed by FINRA and SEC datasets to generate Conduct Risk, Insider Risk, and Remote Work Scores. The company states its platform reduces compliance costs by 25% or more while increasing regulatory adherence, supported by named enterprise customer Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. ($6B+ AUA, 60 advisor teams across 10 Canadian centres).

VigilantCS sells through a direct enterprise sales motion (phone, email, and event-driven engagement) with annual subscription pricing that is not publicly disclosed and appears tailored to firm size and regulatory regime. The company is privately held by its founders, has raised no institutional venture capital, and has financed R&D through non-dilutive NRC IRAP and OCE government grants. Geographic reach is concentrated in Canada — the VigilantCS trademark is explicitly not marketed in the United States — with latent international recognition evidenced by Deloitte RegTech Universe placements (2019, 2022) and Grant Thornton UK RegTech Awards (2019, 2020).

Name

VIGILANT: COMPLIANCE SIMPLIFIED INC.

Legal name

Vigilant: Compliance Simplified, Inc.

Website

https://vigilantcs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Short description

VigilantCS is an Ottawa-based private SaaS provider of cloud-based staff compliance and conduct risk analytics platforms for Canadian financial services firms regulated under IIROC, MFDA, and insurance regimes, serving boutique dealers, wealth managers, and banks.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regulatory Compliance Software

NAICS

Security Systems Services (56162), Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Cloud Compliance, Audit & Continuous Controls Monitoring (CCM/GRC) (HDABAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Continuous Controls Monitoring (CCM) (HDADAHAE), Security Awareness, Training & Compliance Attestation (HDADAIAJ), Financial Crime Compliance Program Management (Policies, Controls, Training) (FSAMAMAH), Cloud Security & Compliance Services (BPAEACAG)

Keywords

• Regulatory compliance software
• Staff conduct risk
• Regtech platform
• Financial services compliance
• Compliance management software

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. SaaS Platform Subscription: VigilantCS offers cloud-based software-as-a-service platforms (VCSOpen+, VCSPro) on a subscription basis. VCSOpen+ provides eight integrated compliance capabilities and is described as a cost-effective solution with flexible design. VCSPro applies AI and machine learning for conduct risk analytics. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and appears to be quote-based / tailored to firm size and scope.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

VigilantCS provides a cloud-based staff digital compliance platform for Canadian financial services firms that digitizes and consolidates employee compliance data into a centralized hub. The platform automates regulatory disclosures, continuing education tracking, registration management, gift and entertainment logs, and compliance calendars, and applies AI/ML-driven behavioral algorithms to generate dynamic Conduct Risk, Insider Risk, and Remote Work scores for risk-based supervision.

Product overview

VIGILANT: COMPLIANCE SIMPLIFIED INC. offers a cloud-based compliance lifecycle platform for Canadian financial services firms (IIROC, MFDA, securities commissions, and Life and Health Insurance industries). The product portfolio consists of VCS (RCM) as the core regulatory requirements management platform, supplemented by VCSOpen+ modules for securities and insurance that operationalize controls through a centralized staff-facing portal, and VCSPro as an AI-driven behavioral analytics add-on that generates conduct risk, insider risk, and remote work scores. VCSOpen+ integrates eight compliance capabilities: corporate registry, location registry, staff registration management, continuing education tracking, gift and entertainment log, co-op marketing log, complaint and incident log, and compliance calendar. VCSPro applies machine learning algorithms to staff regulatory and IT security data to predict compliance propensity and enable risk-based supervision. The solutions transform mandatory compliance functions into strategic advantages through automation, digitization, and conduct risk analytics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• VCSOpen+: Cloud-based digitized staff compliance platform for managing staff compliance obligations including corporate registry, location registry, staff registration management, continuing education tracking, gift and entertainment log, co-op marketing log, complaint and incident log, and compliance calendar. Available for Securities and Insurance sectors.
• VCSPro
• VCS (RCM)

Products and services

• VCS (RCM) - Regulatory Requirements Management Core platform that manages the regulatory requirements lifecycle for Canadian financial services firms, including inventory of regulatory requirements, accountability assignment, control inventory, and control testing for evidence compliance. Intended for compliance teams at securities firms, wealth managers, and insurance firms subject to IIROC, MFDA, FSRA, and OSFI oversight.
• VCSOpen+ (Securities) Cloud-based digitized staff compliance platform for securities firms (IIROC, MFDA, provincial securities commissions) that operationalizes controls including role sensitivity, conditions, disclosures, training, incident logging, and compliance calendar. Integrates eight compliance capabilities (corporate registry, location registry, staff registration management, continuing education tracking, gift and entertainment log, co-op marketing log, complaint and incident log, and compliance calendar) into a centralized staff-facing portal.
• VCSOpen+ (Life and Health Insurance) Life and Health Insurance Staff Compliance Platform that complements VCSOpen+ (Securities), providing the same operationalized controls for insurance-licensed staff. Designed for MFDA and IIROC advisors who also hold life and health insurance licenses, enabling supervisors to access a complete advisor regulatory file across both regulatory regimes (Know Your Advisors / KYA).
• VCSPro AI and machine learning-powered conduct risk analytics platform that gathers staff regulatory and IT security information and applies behavioral algorithms informed by FINRA and SEC datasets to generate Conduct Risk Score, Insider Risk Score, and Remote Work Score. Enables risk-based supervision and preventive action targeting for financial services firms.
• VigilantCS Employee Compliance (VEC) Cloud-based employee conduct risk platform (VEC) that breaks down data silos by digitizing and consolidating employee data, running it through a behavioral algorithm, and generating a conduct risk score to enable a risk-based, continuous-improvement approach to staff compliance programs for regulated firms.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduces compliance costs by 25% or more while simultaneously increasing adherence to regulations
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Norman Paterson School of International Affairs (Carleton University)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2023VigilantCS partnered with the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University for a capstone course examining the correlation between conduct risk and insider risk (April 2023). This academic collaboration supports research and development of the company's insider risk models.
• C-irM COE (Centre of Excellence)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 January 2023VigilantCS announced a new partnership with C-irM COE (Centre of Excellence) to build an insider risk model. This partnership aims to develop enhanced insider risk analytics by combining VigilantCS's conduct risk platform data with C-irM COE's research capabilities, supporting the financial services industry's ability to understand and manage insider threats.
• GrowthXminorOthers · 9 November 2022VigilantCS was selected as part of the latest GrowthX cohort (November 2022), an accelerator program providing growth mentorship, resources, and networking opportunities for fintech companies. This represents participation in a startup growth program rather than a commercial partnership.
• CUBEcoreTechnology or Integration · 20 October 2021VigilantCS partnered with CUBE to strengthen conduct risk compliance through automated regulatory change management. The partnership integrates CUBE's automated regulatory change management capabilities with VigilantCS's conduct risk platform, enabling financial services firms to more efficiently track and respond to regulatory changes while maintaining staff-level compliance oversight.
• PortfolioAidcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 September 2020VigilantCS and PortfolioAid collaborated to support wealth management firms with Client Focused Reform (CFR) compliance requirements. The collaboration integrates PortfolioAid's CFR-focused capabilities with VigilantCS's VCSOpen+ platform to provide comprehensive support for advisors managing both corporate and individual conflicts of interest across securities and insurance activities.
• Federation of Mutual Fund Dealers (FMFD)minorOthers · 1 July 2019VigilantCS became a member of the Federation of Mutual Fund Dealers (FMFD) in July 2019, an industry association representing mutual fund dealers in Canada, providing networking and market access within the MFDA-regulated community.
• L-SparkminorOthers · 1 June 2017VigilantCS has been a member of L-Spark since June 2017, an Ottawa-based accelerator focused on SaaS and cloud companies, providing mentorship, market access, and investment readiness support.
• MaRSminorOthers · 1 June 2017VigilantCS has been a member of MaRS since June 2017, a Toronto-based innovation hub that supports startups and scale-ups with resources, networks, and expertise in various sectors including fintech.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Smarsh: Smarsh offers communications compliance, archiving, and supervision for regulated financial firms — overlapping with VigilantCS's conduct-risk and social media declaration monitoring capabilities.
• CUBE: CUBE provides automated regulatory change management and horizon scanning for financial services firms — the same category as VigilantCS's regulatory requirements management and a current strategic integration partner, making it both a peer and ecosystem ally.
• ComplySci: ComplySci provides employee compliance and personal trading surveillance solutions for financial services firms, including code of ethics administration, gift and entertainment tracking, and continuing education — directly mirroring VigilantCS's VCSOpen+ capabilities.
• Fenergo: Fenergo provides client lifecycle management, KYC, AML and regulatory onboarding for financial institutions — comparable to VigilantCS's Know Your Advisor (KYA) and staff compliance oversight across securities and insurance regimes.
• Behavox: Behavox offers AI-powered conduct risk and compliance surveillance for financial institutions using natural language processing and behavioural analytics — directly comparable to VigilantCS's VCSPro conduct-risk scoring and insider-risk algorithm approach.
• RegEd: RegEd delivers compliance training, continuing education tracking, registration management, and attestation tools for broker-dealers and insurance carriers — overlapping with VigilantCS's staff registration, CE tracking, and attestation modules.

Emerging players

• SteelEye: SteelEye delivers AI-enabled compliance and surveillance for financial firms, including trade, communications, and conduct monitoring — an emerging competitor with similar ML-driven conduct analytics to VCSPro.
• Ascent (AscentAI / FinTech RegTech): Ascent applies AI to regulatory compliance for financial institutions, automating regulatory intelligence and rule mapping — an emerging player whose regulatory change management focus overlaps with VCS (RCM).

Broad incumbents

• NICE Actimize: NICE Actimize provides financial crime, AML, fraud, and employee compliance surveillance for global financial institutions — a broad incumbent in the same conduct and compliance risk category as VigilantCS but with much larger scale and product breadth.
• Wolters Kluwer (OneSumX / Compliance Solutions): Wolters Kluwer's OneSumX suite offers enterprise-scale regulatory reporting, risk, and compliance solutions for banks and insurers — a broad incumbent that competes with VigilantCS's RCM and conduct-risk modules but serves a much wider portfolio of regulated clients.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/vigilant_cs
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vigilantcs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about VIGILANT: COMPLIANCE SIMPLIFIED INC.