Arbor Steel

01 / WHAT IT BUILT

What the company did

Arbor Steel was a London-based secure digital identity platform founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneur and UK Cyber Security Council trustee Edward Goodchild. Its 'digital identity citadel' combined facial biometrics and document checks for user authentication with secure document sharing, secure messaging and workflow management — aimed at replacing risky sharing of passports and driving licences over unencrypted email. Offered to consumers and SMEs from £8.33 a month, its initial target was law and legal services firms, with development done in collaboration with agency Orckid through Goodchild's Zendht Venture Studio.

03 / EVENT HISTORY

Events in the structured record

1. 2019
   Company founded

   Arbor Steel is founded in London by Edward Goodchild as a secure identity platform ('digital identity citadel') for biometrics-based authentication and secure data sharing.

2. 2020
   Grant funding

   Arbor Steel secures a £100,000 InnovateUK grant, which funds the build of a fully operational product.

3. 2022
   Pre-seed round

   In April 2022, Arbor Steel raises £200,000 in pre-seed funding from a single family office as the product launches to market, initially targeting professional and financial services clients.