Cercli, a payroll startup founded in early 2023, has raised $4 million in seed funding as part of its ambitious plans to revolutionize workforce management across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
The funding round, led by Silicon Valley’s Afore Capital, marks the venture firm’s first major investment in the region. Other notable participants include COTU Ventures, Y Combinator, and several prominent angel investors.
Founded by Akeed Azmi and David Reche, Cercli addresses the ongoing challenges faced by businesses in the MENA region, such as fragmented payroll systems, human errors, and compliance issues. These issues are particularly pronounced for companies managing diverse global teams, often leading to inefficiencies and high costs.
Cercli’s platform offers an integrated solution, simplifying payroll management by combining human resources, finance, and compliance functions into a single interface. This approach ensures businesses can manage both local and global workforces with ease while maintaining full compliance with market-specific regulations.
Cercli’s rapid growth has been remarkable, with the company experiencing a 25% increase in users month-on-month since its launch. In less than a year, Cercli has processed over $23 million in employee salaries across 31 countries.
The company’s founders, with experience from regional unicorns like Careem and Kitopi, are leveraging their expertise to build a platform that caters specifically to the MENA market. Their goal is to become the “Rippling” of the region, a reference to the US-based HR and payroll management giant.
The fresh capital injection will allow Cercli to expand its product offerings, targeting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as large corporations.
The company plans to strengthen its presence in key markets, enhance its platform’s features, and attract top talent to further accelerate its growth. By focusing on mid-market enterprises, Cercli aims to provide a cost-effective and compliant payroll solution that helps businesses manage their workforce efficiently while cutting down on errors and delays.
This new investment reflects the significant potential for payroll automation in the MENA region, where businesses are actively seeking modern solutions to streamline operations.
With this backing, Cercli is well-positioned to lead the payroll transformation in MENA, setting new standards for how businesses manage their most important asset: their people.
