How long does it take to get SOC 2 report for a startup?

A DIY approach could take up to six months minimum. In contrast, a compliance automation route with a platform such as Sprinto could only take weeks.

How much does it cost for a startup to get SOC 2 compliant?

We’d estimate the starting costs of a SOC 2 Type 1 audit alone to range between $8000 to $30000. SOC 2 Type 2 with a more extended evaluation window costs a tad more. We’d estimate SOC 2 cost for Type 2 reports between $20000 – $50000. SOC 2 with Sprinto costs way less for startups.

Do Startups need SOC 2?

Early-stage startups need not worry about SOC 2 compliance. However, once your startup enters the growth stage, it becomes crucial to give serious consideration to SOC 2. If your startup has already surpassed the growth stage without obtaining a compliance report, prioritizing SOC 2 should be at the top of your list.

How important is SOC 2 for startups?

SOC 2 is an industry-accepted way for startups and other businesses to assure customers that their data is secure with them.

Compliance made easy

ISO 27001 for Fintech: Secure First, Scale Fast

Fintech companies in early growth stages often walk a tightrope between speed and security. When launching and scaling take priority and compliance is seen as a momentum disruptor, the reactive approach can backfire. These companies become prime targets for cybercriminals, putting their credibility at risk.
That’s why ISO 27001 for fintech is your go-to framework for building a strong foundation that earns long-term trust while improving immediate cyber resilience

What is ISO 27001 for Fintech?

ISO 27001 for fintech is a global standard for the development, implementation, and maintenance of effective Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sensitive data. It helps protect information such as payment details, customers’ personal information, and bank account data.

The financial sector is highly regulated and must comply with various data security requirements, such as Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). ISO 27001, while a voluntary standard, uses a risk-based methodology that aligns security efforts across multiple regulations and helps fintech firms minimize audit fatigue.

Why is ISO 27001 for fintech important?

The Fintech sector is a prime target of cyberattacks and digital identity fraud because of the large volumes of financial data involved. ISO 27001 for fintech helps minimize the risk of threats and breaches and builds trust and confidence with banks, investors and enterprise clients.

70000+ certificates issued

Widespread global adoption

Security benchmark

#1 standard to prove infosec controls

Competitive edge

Faster funding and sales cycle

Supports other frameworks

Aligns with PCI DSS, GDPR

The first 90 days roadmap for fintech companies

If you are just starting on your ISO 27001 for fintech journey, here’s a list of areas you should focus on strengthening in the first 90 days:

Focus area and why it
matters

Secure data and transactions –

Minimize breaches and support PCI DSS compliance

Protect against vulnerabilities –

Reduce cyber risks by patching weaknesses

Ensure cloud security –

Safeguard sensitive financial data in cloud environments

Strengthen access control –

Prevent unauthorized access to financial systems

Implement security policies –

Establish governance and compliance controls

Manage third-party risks –

Assess and monitor vendors to minimize security gaps

Key ISO 27001:2022 Controls with examples

8.24 – Cryptographic Key Management

(Key storage, secure APIs)

8.8 – Technical Vulnerability Management

(Patching critical vulnerabilities in < 72 hours)

5.23 – Information Security for Cloud Services

(S3 bucket encryption)

8.2 – Identity & Access Management

(MFA, role-based access controls)

5.1 – Information Security Policies

(Documented ISMS)

5.19 – Supplier Relationship Security

(Service level agreements for partners)

What does the certification process look like?

The ISO 27001 certification process is a comprehensive, well-structured journey that begins with documentation reviews, followed by control testing, annual surveillance audits, and full recertification every three years.

Stage 1 (Readiness Review)

Auditor reviews documentation + initial ISMS setup (mostly off-site)

Stage 2 (Certification Audit)

Auditor evaluates the implementation and effectiveness of controls (on-site)

Certification Issuance

If no gaps/ non-conformities are identified, company receives official certification

Surveillance audits (yearly)

Annual audit that confirms the ISMS is in an effective state

Recertification (every 3 years)

A full audit is conducted to renew certification

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But what about the timeline and costs?

If you’re going all in on the traditional route, this is what ISO 27001 timeline and costs will look like:

Typical ISO 27001 timeline

Months 1-2: Preparation and planning (ISMS scope, risk assessments, policies)

Months 3-4: Implementation (deploy security controls, training)

Months 5-6: Internal audit (internal assessments and
fixes)

Months 7-8: Stage 1 & 2 audits (assessment by external auditors)

Month 9: Final fixes + certification decisions

Ongoing: Annual surveillance audits and maintenance

Typical ISO 27001 costs

$5000-$20000

$5000-$50000

$3000-$10000

$10000-$30000

(mostly no extra charges)

$5000-$30000+

Take our expert’s advise

ISO 27001

With Sprinto you can get compliant in weeks, instead of months without slowing down. Read how Axslogic completed ISO 27001 implementation in 8 weeks!

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Steps to implement ISO 27001 for Fintech

1

Define scope

Define the ISMS boundaries, including your critical assets, key processes, systems, employees, services, and even geographies. This information is documented in the scope statement, which customers, prospects, and key stakeholders refer to for understanding what is protected.

2

Conduct risk assessment

Identify all potential threats and vulnerabilities to financial transactions, data storage, and customer information. Prioritize these risks based on likelihood and impact, and implement any of the four risk treatment options as required—risk avoidance, transfer, acceptance, or mitigation. The Statement of Applicability (SOA) is then developed based on this assessment, justifying the inclusion or exclusion of selected controls.

3

Draft policies and documents

Develop an information security policy and all supporting documents such as access control procedure, incident response plan, ISMS manual, data protection policy and Bring-Your-Own Device (BYOD) rules. Make sure these align with your current state, Annex A controls and any financial regulations that you must adhere to.

4

Implement the required controls

The next step is to implement the required technical, organizational, and process-based controls including multi-factor authentication, encryption, access controls, secure APIs, incident response, and fraud detection mechanisms as required by fintech organizations.

5

Train your team

During audits, the effectiveness of ISMS is also evaluated with staff interviews. So, it is crucial that they understand the potential risks and know about security best practices. Organize training and awareness sessions for your team to build a proactive and security-aware mindset on a daily basis.

6

Conduct internal audit

Using an ISO 27001 checklist, conduct an internal audit to verify control implementation and identify any gaps. Arrange a management review meeting to discuss the findings and areas for improvement. The goal must be to have > 90% of controls ready before you proceed with the external audit.

7

Stage 1 and 2 audits

Choose an accredited ISO 27001 auditor for stage 1 and 2 audits. Stage 1 will be a documentation and readiness review and stage 2 will be a comprehensive onsite audit to verify ISO 27001 compliance requirements. In case of non-conformities, evidence of corrective action must also be shared with the auditor.

8

Certification and ongoing maintenance

Upon passing the audit, you shall receive the ISO 27001 certification. However, the goal must be to achieve a state of continuous compliance and pass yearly surveillance audits. Establish ongoing monitoring mechanisms and real-time dashboards to stay on top of compliance.

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Benefits of ISO 27001 for Fintech

Operational resilience

The proactive risk management and business continuity controls to maintain critical services ensure payment systems’ uptime 24/7. The standard also promotes continuous monitoring and improvement of security measures to stay responsive and agile against threats and maintain operational resilience.

Minimized breaches

ISO 27001 for fintech offers a systematic and risk-based approach to information security. It mandates the use of risk assessments, access controls, encryption and continuous monitoring to minimize account takeovers, data leaks, unauthorized users, and other cyber breach incidents.

Boosts marketing

The ISO 27001 certified badge on the website signals enterprise-grade security, and press releases announcing certification enhance credibility. This accelerates B2B sales enablements and reduces the time required for security questionnaires with pre-vetted compliance proof.

Flexibility to scale

ISO 27001 is an adaptable and flexible framework whose scope can be tailored to the organization’s current security maturity. So, you can start with foundational security policies and expand as you grow. This makes it scalable without the need for costly retrofits.

Baseline compliance

Acting as foundational compliance, ISO 27001 helps fintech companies seamlessly meet requirements with other regulatory frameworks. It shares controls with GDPR, PCI DSS, SOC 2, and NIST CSF and helps firms avoid duplication of efforts and audit fatigue.

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“Sprinto keeps us compliant by moving us towards right behaviors and practices.”

Shreerang Gondegaonkar,

CTO at Giift

“None of the other tools we explored connected with us well as Sprinto did. Sprinto felt welcoming like it was made for us.”

Ruben Stolk,

CTO Capptions

“Sprinto’s dashboard is very interactive. With a single click you can see where you stand, and how many things are compliant and pending across different levels such as infrastructure, people, devices and more”

Anil Verma,

CISO Officebeacon

How Sprinto can make things easier for my business?

As a fintech organization, the data you handle is a goldmine for cybercriminals, making trust non-negotiable for VCs, customers and other stakeholders. ISO 27001 is the universal framework of security, and getting certified is a no-brainer. But with evolving threats, constant regulatory updates, and limited resources, navigating compliance can be overwhelming—especially for a scaling business. That’s why we built Sprinto to help fintech companies like yours fast track ISO 27001 compliance.

Sprinto can help you get certified without slowing down your operations. Here’s how:

Pre-mapped controls: Get controls automatically mapped to requirements criteria
Integrated risk assessments: Leverage quantitative risk assessments with actionable remediation plans
Ready-to-use policies: Use customizable templates and track policy adoption across your organization
Continuous monitoring: Maintain real-time visibility into security and compliance with continuous control testing and automated alerts
Automated evidence collection: Collect audit-grade evidence automatically to ease certification and surveillance audits
Smart notifications: Get automated multi-channel alerts for any instance of non-compliance

Watch Sprinto in action and kickstart your journey today.

Talk to our experts to know more

Frequently Asked Questions

While PCI DSS specifically protects cardholder data, ISO 27001 covers broader aspects of information security including third-party interactions and business data. It’s also better recognized globally by enterprises and clients and is required as a maturity benchmark for scaling fintechs.

Yes, leveraging your cloud provider’s certification (such as AWS or Azure) can reduce the audit scope, but only for specific areas. If your provider manages infrastructure security (e.g., physical security and network infrastructure), you don’t need to undergo a separate audit for those aspects. However, you must still demonstrate security for everything you manage, such as access controls, encryption, and monitoring.

If you are a startup, limit the ISMS scope to critical assets and reduce complexity. Use automated tools such as Sprinto to fast-track evidence collection and leverage policy templates. And lastly, use compliant cloud service providers such as AWS and Azure to inherit compliance controls.

While ISO 27001 does not explicitly cover fraud-prevention and AML measures, it does support these efforts through controls such as incident management (minimizes transaction anomalies) or access controls (prevents account takeovers).

Sprinto: Your growth superpower

Use Sprinto to centralize security compliance management – so nothing
gets in the way of your moving up and winning big.

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