Do fintechs need ISO 27001 as well as SOC 2?

Often when selling into Europe or to global enterprises, which tend to ask for an accredited certification. Because the frameworks overlap heavily, on Keel you implement once and the shared controls count toward both.

How does ISO 27001 relate to PCI DSS?

They have different scopes: ISO 27001 governs your whole ISMS, while PCI DSS is specific to cardholder data. Many technical controls (access, logging, vulnerability management) satisfy both, so Keel reuses the overlap rather than repeating it.

fintech

ISO 27001 for fintech companies

ISO/IEC 27001:2022 is the international standard for an information security management system (ISMS), resulting in a certification from an accredited body. Fintechs selling internationally increasingly see it requested alongside SOC 2 and PCI DSS.

Start free ISO/IEC 27001 overview

Context

Why it matters for fintech

European banking partners and global enterprise customers often prefer an accredited certification over a US attestation. A fintech that already runs tight controls for SOC 2 and PCI DSS has done much of the underlying work; ISO 27001 formalizes it into a managed system.

Priorities

What to focus on

01

An ISMS around money movement

ISO 27001 requires a managed system: scope, risk assessment and treatment, security objectives, internal audits, and management review. For fintech, the risk work naturally centers on the systems that move money and hold financial data.

02

Annex A: 93 controls in four themes

The 2022 revision organizes Annex A into 93 controls across four themes: Organizational, People, Physical, and Technological. You select applicable controls and record the decisions in a Statement of Applicability.

03

Reuse your SOC 2 and PCI DSS work

Access control, change management, logging and monitoring, vulnerability management, and incident response map closely across SOC 2, PCI DSS, and ISO 27001. On one crosswalked control library, a control you already run counts toward ISO 27001 too.

Do it once, not twice

Keel is built on one crosswalked control library, so a control you implement for ISO/IEC 27001 counts toward every other framework it satisfies. Add a second framework later and it mostly reuses this work. See the crosswalk explorer for the exact overlap.

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Common questions

Do fintechs need ISO 27001 as well as SOC 2?: Often when selling into Europe or to global enterprises, which tend to ask for an accredited certification. Because the frameworks overlap heavily, on Keel you implement once and the shared controls count toward both.
How does ISO 27001 relate to PCI DSS?: They have different scopes: ISO 27001 governs your whole ISMS, while PCI DSS is specific to cardholder data. Many technical controls (access, logging, vulnerability management) satisfy both, so Keel reuses the overlap rather than repeating it.

Framework names are referenced factually for guidance. Keel is not affiliated with or endorsed by the bodies that publish them. See our legal and trademarks page.