Nigerian-Founded Rulebase Raises USD 2.1 M To Automate Financial Services Compliance

Rulebase, a Nigerian-founded startup tackling compliance and back-office automation in financial services, has raised a USD 2.1 M pre-seed round led by Bowery Capital, with participation from Y Combinator, Commerce Ventures, Transpose Platform VC, and several angels.

Founded in 2024 by Gideon Ebose (ex-Microsoft) and Chidi Williams (ex-Goldman Sachs), the YC alum builds an AI “coworker” that automates regulatory-heavy workflows like quality assurance, dispute resolution, and compliance reviews. Unlike flashy AI chatbots, Rulebase focuses on the back-office tasks that financial institutions often neglect but spend millions managing.

Already deployed at U.S. business bank Rho and a Fortune 50 financial institution, Rulebase says its software cuts compliance costs by up to 70% and reduces escalations by 30%.

The Lagos- and London-based founders plan to use the funding to expand engineering, add features like fraud investigation and audit prep, and target banks, neobanks, and card issuers across Africa, Europe, and the U.S.