Kenyan HR startup Crew HR &Payroll has rebranded as FaidiHR after it received an undisclosed amount of funding from SprintX, a US-based VC focused on early-stage startups.
Founded in 2018, the startup now known as FaidiHR is an all-in-one cloud platform that allows small and medium enterprises in Africa to automate their HR processes. The platform helps to automate payroll, off-days, employee data, tasks, inventory, training, appraisals, and expenses.
The undisclosed round of funding comes from SprintX, a venture studio owned by 3pm in Austin, United States (US). SprintX funds early-stage startups building platforms and marketplaces.
FaidiHR will use the investment to expand in East Africa, with the startup eyeing entry into Uganda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). CEO Peter Muchemi said the move is the startup’s first round of VC investment and comes after it achieved strong market validation.
“We intend to use these funds to grow the business even as we continue to focus on our main clientele – small and medium entreprises. So far we have had the chance to validate our business with millions in annual turnover with thousands of employees’ salaries being processed by our platform. Our platform has served different clients in diverse industries like aviation, hospitality and tours, and NGOs, among other industries,” he said.
“In the course of the next few months we will be launching features that will focus more on the employee to add more value so that they can be more productive. An example is a payroll lending feature we are working on together with one of our clients that will allow employee access to instant mobile loans based on their repayment capabilities. This will be possible because we have real-time data that can score employees.”
Muchemi said the name change was the culmination of a need to let the brand speak for itself.
“In the spirit of rebranding, we will continue to commit to our customers and provide the same, or better, level of professionalism you have experienced and we’d like to take the opportunity to thank our loyal customers and business partners for your trust and friendship in business,” he said.
Pavan Kumar, managing partner of SprintX, said FaidiHR was a unique platform that specialised in addressing the needs of enterprises in Kenya.
“The founders have deeper understanding and a strong product road map to serve the growing needs of small, medium and large companies in Kenya. Combining their sales and technology skills, with our expertise in platforms and business strategy, would be the right recipe to attain market leadership in the near term. With our investments in FaidiHR and Jumuisha, SprintX is poised to play a major role in Kenya startup ecosystem through strategic investments in early stage startup,” he said.
