Small businesses are the backbone of Africa’s labor market. In Nigeria alone, 44 million small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) provide jobs to more than 80 percent of the workforce. Yet for these businesses and their employees, access to payroll automation, HR tools, and embedded financial services remains out of reach. In industries like logistics, retail, and manufacturing, businesses still rely on spreadsheets or manual processes to manage salaries and benefits. These inefficiencies not only stall business growth but also leave employees exposed to the risks of irregular pay, lack of savings options, and predatory lending.

As Africa’s workforce expands, the role of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in shaping the future of work is more critical than ever. SMEs already account for over 80 percent of jobs across the continent, yet they often lack the tools and infrastructure to manage, retain, and support their teams effectively. With more than 450 million people expected to enter Africa’s labor force by 2035, enabling these job creators to operate efficiently and offer dignified, accessible financial services is both an economic imperative and a development opportunity. PaidHR is meeting this challenge head-on by providing the infrastructure that helps SMEs formalize operations, stay compliant, and support employee financial resilience.

At Accion Venture Lab, we believe the next wave of financial inclusion in Africa will come from platforms that bridge workforce management with financial well-being. PaidHR is building exactly that and helping define what the future of work can look like across the continent.

PaidHR is a Nigeria-based HR tech company offering a modular platform that integrates payroll automation, compliance tools, and employee financial services tailored to the needs of African SMEs. For businesses that have long been underserved by enterprise-grade HR solutions, PaidHR provides an accessible alternative, one designed for local realities, with flexible workflows and a strong emphasis on affordability and ease of use.

We’re thrilled to lead PaidHR’s $1.8M seed round. With over 250 SME clients and more than 20,000 employees onboarded, the company is proving that software built for African businesses, especially those with fewer than 200 employees, can drive both operational transformation and long-term financial well-being. Here’s why we’re excited to partner with PaidHR on their journey:

Helping small businesses operate better, faster, and more affordably

Most payroll and HR tools in Africa are built for larger companies. SMEs often get left behind, priced out, or overwhelmed by solutions that don’t reflect their needs. PaidHR offers a flexible, modular platform priced per employee per month, allowing businesses to transition from manual processes to a fully digital system without steep upfront costs

The platform drastically reduces payroll processing time from over a week to just one day, and ensures clean, compliant data that supports timely salary payments, tax deductions, and pension remittances. This shift isn’t just about back-office efficiency. For employees, timely and consistent pay is critical. PaidHR’s early customers consistently cite improved employee morale and retention as key benefits of the switch.

Embedding financial services that build resilience for employees

Financial stress is a daily reality for many workers in Africa. In Nigeria alone, over 80 percent of workers operate outside the formal credit system, and less than 20 percent report having access to emergency savings. Across sub-Saharan Africa, up to 60 percent of adults borrow from informal sources, often paying monthly interest rates as high as 30 to 50 percent. This reliance on costly, unregulated lenders exposes workers to cycles of debt and deepens financial vulnerability during routine cash flow gaps.

PaidHR’s platform integrates earned wage access, allowing employees to access a portion of their salary ahead of payday at a responsible fee. Since launching this feature in Q3 2024, PaidHR has seen repeat employees use earned wage access for emergencies, bills, and even transportation, indicating that employees value flexible, affordable, and transparent options for managing their cash flow.

In addition, employees can receive payments and save in USD through PaidHR’s multicurrency wallet, helping them hedge against local currency volatility, a critical need in markets like Nigeria, where the naira has depreciated from roughly ₦997 per USD at the end of 2023 to ₦1,600 per USD in 2025. PaidHR’s multicurrency wallets provide access to employees of non-tech SMEs whose access to such accounts is typically limited. These services, delivered seamlessly within the same platform that manages payroll, create a powerful link between income and financial health.

Powering cross-border payroll and compliance in a changing workforce

Africa’s workforce is becoming more mobile and more connected. PaidHR enables businesses to pay staff across borders and currencies, supporting 49 currencies through its wallet infrastructure and partners. Pan-African companies are already using PaidHR to run multi-country payroll, while employees in Nigeria are opting to convert part of their income into USD to protect against inflation.

PaidHR also automates tax and pension remittances, helping businesses stay compliant while reducing the administrative burden. This is especially valuable in markets like Nigeria and Kenya, where evolving regulation can be hard for SMEs to navigate. PaidHR’s partnerships with regulated financial institutions ensure compliance without sacrificing usability.

While HR software solutions have emerged across Africa, many remain costly, rigid, or designed for enterprise needs, leaving smaller businesses behind. PaidHR stands apart by building specifically for the realities of SMEs: affordable pricing, modular implementation, and configurable workflows that reflect local compliance and employee structures. It’s this combination of local insight, financial inclusion, and technical flexibility that has enabled PaidHR to scale quickly and win customer trust in a space crowded with less adaptable solutions.

A team building for Africa’s future of work

We’ve been deeply impressed by PaidHR’s founding team, Seye Bandele (CEO) and Lekan Omotosho (CTO), and their customer-first approach. Seye’s ability to build trust with SMEs and win clients reflects his deep understanding of the local market. Lekan, who has extensive experience building payroll systems, brings world-class engineering rigor to a product that must be secure, reliable, and scalable.

In just over a year, PaidHR has already increased its payroll volume by 186 percent and maintained a 95 percent retention rate. The platform already supports over 250 businesses across Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa, processing millions in salary disbursements and financial transactions.

PaidHR is not only helping small businesses grow; it’s also enabling workers to access the tools they need to build financial stability and plan for the future. At Accion Venture Lab, we are proud to back a company that embodies what inclusive fintech should look like: built locally, designed for impact, and focused on the people who need it most.