Paragon Data Labs (PDL), the creators of Compliance Administration & Tracking (CAT), a cloud-based enterprise compliance platform, is pleased to announce its first round of angel investors and the formation of its strategic advisory council, comprised of fintech pioneers and distinguished industry leaders.
“With the immense support of the members of our strategic advisory council and their angel investments, we have the capital, knowledge and technology to make our vision the industry standard in employee compliance — a modernization that is long overdue,” said Jefferson Mitchell, Co-Founder and CEO of Paragon Data Labs.
Mitchell, along with former colleagues Joshua Litwack and SK Gupta, sought to accelerate the rate of change and innovation in the compliance technology space, which has been notoriously slow to evolve. They developed a scalable cloud-based platform capable of monitoring and tracking conflicts of interest that enables compliance teams to streamline critical business functions and adapt their compliance programs with the regulatory environment.
“I’ve historically experienced employee compliance as a Rube Goldberg collection of outdated spot solutions, crummy Outlook forms and manual, time-consuming processes. When I saw how the PDL team had elegantly brought all compliance activity together into an easy-to-use, cloud-based platform, I immediately realized how much the industry truly needs this solution. I am excited to be an investor and board member helping PDL in its mission to change the face of employee compliance,” said renowned fintech executive Jody Kochansky.
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Kochansky wasn’t the only person impressed. The innovative venture has attracted support from an accomplished and ingenious group of angel investors who will also serve as a strategic advisory council to accelerate PDL’s growth.
Through their collective decades as financial services leaders and fintech innovators, these investors possess the broad range of industry and technical knowledge required to catalyze PDL’s growth from novel start-up to market leader. Their industry experience and relationships, combined with a mutual interest in PDL’s mission and product, will enable PDL to capitalize on this expansive opportunity.
Experience Matters: Meet the Strategic Advisory Council
Jody Kochansky | Currently serving as an advisor to PE firms, Jody is a renowned fintech executive. He formerly served as Head of the Aladdin Product Group (APG) at BlackRock, where he was responsible for defining and implementing the vision for Aladdin. From inception, Jody helped evolve Aladdin into the most prominent and comprehensive investment management platform available, used by hundreds of organizations to manage over $20 trillion in assets across the globe.
Hilary Agin | Accomplished executive with decades of industry experience having served in multiple leadership positions at BlackRock. She was Chief of Staff to the COO as well as COO for the Real Estate Investment Business, COO for Internal Audit and Chief Procurement Officer, where she established world class vendor management and vendor risk functions.
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Sarah Hallac | Former investment banker turned author and philanthropist has been a leader in financial services for over 30 years. She was an early leader in mortgage securitization, including the first Agency Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit (REMIC), and she has been published in several books, including The Handbook of Mortgage-Backed Securities.
Jeff Keil | A seasoned bank executive with more than four decades in financial services leadership across an evolving regulatory landscape. He notably served as the President and Vice Chairman of Edmond Safra’s Republic New York Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Republic National Bank of New York.
Scott Condron | Fintech advisor and investor spent nearly two decades with BlackRock as the Chief Architect, Chief Software Engineer and Chief Technology Officer. He holds several patents for Aladdin innovations and led BlackRock’s participation in both the New York and London-based fintech Innovation Lab, where he actively serves as Adjunct Industry Mentor.
James Kong | Angel investor and start-up enthusiast who knows what it takes to grow a successful business. He was an early employee at BlackRock and a key strategist leading the growth of the Business Operations Organization. While at BlackRock, James held a number of leadership positions, including Global Head of Aladdin Portfolio Services and Head of Portfolio Compliance.
Andy Stewart | Currently serving as an Industry Partner for Motive Partners, Andy has extensive experience building and leading alternative investment businesses. Prior to Motive Partners, Andy co-led BlackRock’s Alternative Investment Platform (BAI) and chaired BAI’s Executive Committee. He was a member of BAI’s investment committees as well as BlackRock’s global operating and human capital committees.
In addition to their roles on the council, Kochansky and Agin will also serve on PDL’s Board of Directors, bringing broad industry knowledge and expertise to the governance of Paragon Data Labs.
