Ontra launches AI tools that turn legal documents into actionable workflows for private equity firms

Ontra's AI Updates Transform Legal Documents into Actionable Reminders for PE Firms

Ontra is expanding its AI-powered software suite specifically for private equity (PE) firms and asset managers. Its latest launch introduces three new products addressing key operational challenges: Insight for Credit, AI-powered Due Diligence Questionnaires (DDQ), and a human-in-the-loop Know Your Customer (KYC) service.

These solutions aim to streamline manual, fragmented workflows by combining AI with expert human oversight. Following a recent $70 million funding round, Ontra has a total of $325 million raised, fueling further development of AI-driven, domain-specific platforms that integrate seamlessly with industry workflows.

Integrating AI with Real-World Workflows

Troy Pospisil, Ontra’s founder and CEO, emphasizes that the company doesn’t just provide generic AI tools. Instead, they deliver AI integrated into products that solve specific problems, combining automation with human input where precision is critical. This approach ensures high accuracy and relevance for complex legal and compliance tasks.

Who Is Ontra Built For?

Ontra’s platform caters to private market firms across private equity, venture capital, private credit, real estate, infrastructure, and hedge funds. It automates contract management, obligation tracking, entity management, and document workflows, which are traditionally manual and difficult to scale.

Founded in 2014 by a former private equity investor, Ontra was created to address specific pain points in asset management workflows. The company has grown steadily, partnering with major industry players like Blackstone and Battery Ventures to develop a multi-product platform.

Serving the Top of Private Markets

Ontra supports over 1,000 firms globally, including nine of the top ten private equity firms by assets under management. Its clients include Blackstone, AllianceBernstein, Bain Capital Credit, and Warburg Pincus. These firms rely on Ontra to reduce manual legal labor, enhance contract visibility, and improve compliance, freeing internal teams for higher-value work.

CTO Eric Hawkins highlights the opportunity he saw in private markets, which have been underserved by generic tools, similar to his experience transforming property management technology at AppFolio.

Focused Solutions for a Specialized Market

Although the global private fund manager market is relatively small—around 15,000 firms—the potential contract values are significant. Hawkins notes that the spending capability of these enterprise clients makes the market highly valuable, despite its narrower size compared to other sectors.

From Dense Legal Documents to Structured, Actionable Data

The new Insight for Credit feature addresses inefficiencies in managing credit agreements and debt covenants. It uses AI to extract critical terms, covenants, and obligations from complex legal agreements and converts them into actionable reminders and triggers without any manual setup.

Firms simply upload their credit agreements, and Ontra’s AI, trained on a wide variety of contracts, processes the data automatically. This removes the need for customers to configure or prompt the system.

Accelerating Diligence and Compliance

The AI-powered DDQ product helps fund managers meet increasing investor demands by centralizing and standardizing questionnaire responses. It offers AI-suggested content and maintains a living knowledge base, reducing time spent digging through outdated documents. Currently in limited beta, it will roll out more broadly soon.

The upcoming KYC service combines AI with human oversight, offering a fully outsourced compliance model. This service addresses the growing volume of reverse KYC requests with a predictable, structured approach. It is now in beta with select partners, with a full launch planned this fall.

Why Vertical, Purpose-Built AI Tools Matter

While many legal tech companies retrofit horizontal AI tools, Ontra’s vertical focus for private markets sets it apart. Hawkins explains that generic tools don’t fit the bespoke workflows of private capital firms. Ontra’s out-of-the-box solutions aim to deliver accuracy, integration, and ease of use.

Customer collaboration drives Ontra’s product roadmap. The company works closely with its top clients to identify pain points and prioritize features, ensuring the platform evolves with the industry’s needs.

Addressing the Growth and Complexity of Private Markets

The private equity industry has shifted from small partnerships to global institutions managing hundreds of billions or even trillions in assets. As alternative asset classes grow, so do operational and regulatory demands.

Ontra positions itself as a trusted partner with enterprise-grade security and compliance, including SOC 2 and ISO certifications. This trust stems from its years of experience helping firms develop AI governance policies and maintain strict data controls.

Simplifying AI for Enterprise Clients

Ontra’s tools work out of the box, requiring no expertise in AI models or configurations from customers. The platform continuously evaluates multiple large language models behind the scenes to select the most accurate and efficient one for each task.

While Ontra can accommodate enterprise preferences for specific AI models, clients do not need to make technical decisions. This removes complexity and ensures consistent, reliable results.

Looking Ahead

Ontra plans to expand its platform with more products aimed at automating and streamlining private market workflows. By focusing on secure, precise, and relevant solutions, it aims to serve this specialized market without trying to be all things to all users.

For product development professionals interested in AI applications in finance and compliance, Ontra’s approach offers a clear example of how industry-specific tools can simplify complex workflows. Exploring focused AI platforms like Ontra can provide insights into building practical, domain-specific solutions.

To learn more about AI tools for finance and compliance workflows, consider exploring relevant AI tools for finance or browse AI courses by job role to deepen your knowledge.