Light Frame raises $5.1 million for private banking software

Light Frame raised $5.1 million in an oversubscribed seed round to modernize the core banking and portfolio management systems used by private banks and wealth managers. Fortino Ventures led the financing, with support from:

• Sidekick Partners
• Tenity
• Chamaeleon
• Altair Capital

Existing investors Rogue Venture Partners, New Stack Ventures and Studio Alpha also participated. Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, Light Frame will use the proceeds for product development, implementation capacity and growth in private banking and wealth management across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Why Fortino Ventures invested

Fortino Ventures identified the founding team’s banking experience and technical expertise as important factors supporting its investment. Hugh Phelan, Investment Manager at Fortino Ventures, said:

“We are excited to back a team that is exceptionally credible in this space. Schuyler and the team have run a regulated Swiss bank on the kind of infrastructure they are now replacing.

“Few founders in wealth technology have lived the problem this closely, and fewer still have the technical depth to solve it. For a bank, moving sensitive data and live operations onto a new platform is an act of trust, and this team has earned the right to ask for it.”

A modular alternative to legacy core systems

Light Frame says many financial institutions still operate core systems developed decades ago. Those platforms can be expensive to maintain and difficult to modify when institutions need new services or modern software integrations.

Legacy platforms can also fragment information, require manual processes and lengthen implementation schedules, according to the company. Light Frame built its cloud-native platform for private banking and wealth management rather than adapting general-purpose banking infrastructure.

The company combines core banking, investment management and automation in a modular architecture designed to support AI applications. Its features cover banking transactions, investment portfolios and functions for institutions serving affluent and high-net-worth clients.

Light Frame has also incorporated AI functionality to automate complex workflows, improve employee productivity and support more sophisticated client services. The company believes modern infrastructure determines how much financial institutions can gain from AI.

Light Frame pairs automation and advanced technology with security, operational resilience and the reliability required in regulated financial services. The company says AI’s benefits depend on infrastructure that institutions can trust.

What does this change for banks and wealth managers?

Light Frame says institutions can replace individual components of their existing infrastructure or implement the broader platform. The company says the choice is intended to reduce complexity and risk in large modernization projects.

The modular approach may also let banks adopt new capabilities without replacing every existing system at once. Application programming interfaces connect the platform to other systems and support integrations with other financial technologies.

Light Frame reports growing institutional adoption across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Its software already supports live customer operations, according to the company, as it expands its commercial presence.

The team behind the platform

Schuyler Weiss, Light Frame’s Co-Founder and CEO, previously founded Alpian and served as its CEO. Light Frame says Alpian was Switzerland’s first cloud-native private bank.

Co-Founder Mathieu Clément previously served as Alpian’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Information Officer. Founding technologists Philippe Kernevez and Gregory Bataille also belong to the founding team.

Schuyler Weiss, Light Frame’s Co-Founder and CEO, said:

“Light Frame delivers foundational technology with the sophistication institutions require. AI is redefining what technology can deliver, but the realization of its potential in the Wealth industry is dependent on the underlying infrastructure.

“The architecture must be designed around this future, without compromising the security, resilience and trust fundamental to banking. In Fortino and our broader investor group, we have found partners who share our ambition to build that foundation for the next generation of wealth management.”

According to Light Frame, the team has developed and operated banking infrastructure while navigating regulatory requirements and practical financial technology implementation challenges. The company believes that background gives it an edge with institutions that require high security and reliability from technology providers.

Light Frame said the investment reflects continued demand for technology that modernizes operations while incorporating AI and automation into existing workflows.

The next phase

The new financing will support expansion of Light Frame’s development, implementation and commercial operations. The company plans to increase its capacity to onboard financial institutions while continuing to enhance its core banking and portfolio management platform.

Light Frame aims to provide a technology foundation for the next generation of private banking and wealth management services. The next test is implementation: the company plans to onboard more institutions, with initial expansion focused on EMEA.