The verdict in three sentences
In Chicago, a CFO, a Loop trading firm or a family office looking for a payments, custody or digital asset exchange provider increasingly asks its first question to an AI assistant like ChatGPT, before visiting a single website. Those answers draw on what is public, consistent and verifiable about your firm: licenses as actually held, custody model, audits, leadership team, third-party mentions. The work is measured by a dated record of answers to the same questions, month after month, and no serious provider can promise you will be recommended.
What buyers ask AI assistants in Chicago in 2026
Buyers in this niche are institutional or sophisticated. Their questions are about risk before product.
| Question asked to an AI assistant like ChatGPT | Buyer profile | What the answer needs to find |
|---|---|---|
| "Which digital asset custodians serve institutions in Chicago?" | Family office, asset manager | Custody model, target clients, headquarters |
| "Does this fintech hold a money transmitter license in Illinois?" | Corporate CFO | Exact licenses, public references |
| "Which crypto OTC desk works with Chicago trading firms?" | Trading firm | Actual activity, target counterparties, compliance |
| "Which firms have published a SOC 2 report or proof of reserves?" | Chief risk officer | Audits actually obtained, dates |
| "Which payments API accepts stablecoins for a Midwest business?" | CIO, head of treasury | Geographic coverage, documentation |
| "Who runs this company and what is the team's background?" | Investor, banking partner | Factual leadership bios |
| "Has this firm faced action from a regulator?" | A client's compliance team | Accurate, current public information |
If your site and third-party sources don't answer these questions clearly, AI assistants fill the gap with old information, a competitor's details or nothing at all.
Why some firms appear in answers and others don't
The firms that get cited share a few traits: consistent public information everywhere (site, registries, professional directories, trade press), factual pages on licensing, custody and security, clean structured data, credible third-party mentions and content that is dated and kept current. A firm whose site talks about a "financial revolution" without saying which licenses it holds gives little usable material.
Communication here is heavily regulated. In the US, money transmission requires state licenses, New York has its BitLicense, and both the SEC and the CFTC scrutinize digital asset promotion; abroad, the UK cryptoasset financial promotions regime (since 8 October 2023) or MiCA in the European Union apply if you target those markets. Your pages must cite licenses exactly as held, display risk warnings and promise no returns. This is not legal advice: your compliance team signs off every piece of public content.
What this work covers, and what it costs on the market
In broad terms, AI visibility work covers an audit of what AI assistants say today about your firm and your competitors, bringing public information, factual pages and structured data into line, work on third-party mentions and dated tracking over time. The market is young and prices vary widely.
| Service | 2026 ballpark (typical agency quotes) | Duration | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-off diagnostic | 3,000 to 8,000 USD | 2 to 4 weeks | Baseline record, gaps, priorities |
| Monthly engagement, single-product firm | 2,500 to 5,000 USD / month | 6 months minimum advised | Consistency work, factual content, monthly records |
| Monthly engagement, several products or markets | 5,000 to 9,000 USD / month | 6 to 12 months | Same, across several lines and jurisdictions |
| Dated record only (monitoring) | 800 to 2,000 USD / month | Ongoing | Tracking answers to a fixed question list |
| Compliance review of content | 150 to 450 USD / hour (outside counsel) | Depends on volume | Legal sign-off before publication |
At Kolonell, this work is priced on quote, after a diagnostic.
How to measure without illusions
Serious measurement relies on a fixed list of 25 to 50 realistic questions, put to AI assistants on a set date each month. You track the share of answers citing the firm, the accuracy of what is said (licenses, custody, leadership), which competitors appear and which errors need fixing at the source. In parallel, you look at inbound enquiries that mention an AI assistant as their starting point. You need at least 3 records before talking about a trend.
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Mini case study
Illustrative example: Lakeshore Custody Partners, a fictional 30-person digital asset custodian in the Loop, records 40 questions in January: it is cited in 4 answers out of 40, or 10%, one of them with a wrong license. It commits 4,000 USD a month for 6 months, plus a legal review at 3,000 USD (market assumption): 4,000 × 6 + 3,000 = 27,000 USD. In July, the record shows 11 citations out of 40, or 27.5%, with no license errors. If a single institutional mandate brings 60,000 USD in annual fees (assumption), the trade-off is one for the leadership team to weigh.
FAQ
Why doesn't a licensed firm show up in AI answers?
Often because its licenses, custody and team aren't described clearly in public, or are described inconsistently across sources. One page in two without a date or reference is enough to blur the picture.
Can we be sure AI assistants like ChatGPT will recommend us?
No. Nobody controls these answers; you improve the quality and consistency of available information, then measure change over at least 3 to 6 months.
Should we publish our yields or reward rates to get cited?
Not without legal sign-off: digital asset promotion is heavily regulated. Verifiable facts, licenses, audits, custody model, are more useful and safer.
How much does a first diagnostic cost?
As a 2026 ballpark, 3,000 to 8,000 USD on the market, depending on the number of products and jurisdictions. At Kolonell, it is priced on quote.
Is classic SEO still useful?
Yes. Buyers who know your name search for you on Google, and factual pages serve both channels. Most firms put the bulk of their budget there and 20 to 40% into AI visibility.
Find out how AI assistants describe your firm. We record what AI assistants like ChatGPT say about your licenses, your custody model and your Chicago competitors, using a dated question list. Request a diagnostic quote: reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
