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After raising $20 million in a series B round, the United Kingdom-based fintech firm Salary Finance has chosen Boston for its international headquarters.
The company said earlier this week the funding, which was led by founding investor Blenheim Chalcot and multinational financial services company Legal & General, will be used to launch and scale the company in the U.S. and continue growth in Britain.
Salary Finance partners with employers to offer a benefit that helps employees move from debt to savings. All savings deposits and loan repayments are taken by salary deduction, which creates a simple way for employees to manage their personal finances, and Salary Finance’s SaaS-based platform works with existing payroll technology and processes without the need for complicated integration.
“We are delighted to build on our success in the U.K. with our U.S. launch. We see the same societal challenges in the U.S., with 40 percent of American employees lacking any real savings, and carrying personal debt, particularly high-interest debt like credit cards and payday loans,”Asesh Sarkar, CEO of Salary Finance, said in a statement. “This becomes a never-ending way of life for many, impacting their engagement and productivity at work.”
While Salary Finance is formally launching in the U.S. with the funding announcement, according to the Boston Business Journal the startup already has 10 employees working out of the WeWork at 200 Portland St. and plans to hire about 15 more by the end of the year.
Today, 17 million working people in Britain – around 40 percent of the workforce – have less than 100 pounds in savings, with debt increasing by 26 percent since 2013.
At the same time, employers are recognizing the link between an employee’s confidence in their personal finances and their engagement, productivity and wellbeing in the workplace, making financial wellbeing an increasing priority for employers in the U.K. and beyond.
Founded in 2015, the Salary Finance platform is fast becoming a mainstream employee benefit, reaching almost a million employees across the U.K. Recent employers to join the platform include BT, CapGemini, Virgin Active, Mitie and many NHS trusts and councils.
Salary Finance has partnered with United Way, a nonprofit focused on health, education and financial stability, to help it reach rapid scale in the U.S. United Way is introducing Salary Finance to its corporate partners as an added employee benefit.
Salary Finance is currently in the process of rolling out to its first 250,000 employees in the US, including the employees of United Way and L&G America. In total, United Way reaches 60,000 corporate partners, including half of the Fortune 500.
