Cercli, a unified platform designed for MENA businesses to hire, manage, and pay their global workforce, has successfully raised $4 million in a seed funding round. The investment was led by Silicon Valley-based Afore Capital, marking the firm’s first foray into the MENA region, with the funds coming from its $150 million Fund III.
This funding round saw participation from notable investors, including COTU Ventures, Y Combinator, and Rebel Fund. Additionally, prominent figures such as Karim Atiyeh of Ramp, Sebastian Mejia of Rappi, Tony Dong of Rippling, Tony Jamous of Oyster, and Allison Pickens, as well as founders and executives from regional unicorns like Kitopi and Careem, joined the round.
Cercli aims to address the $2 billion market opportunity for payroll services in MENA, where businesses often face significant compliance challenges due to human error. The platform consolidates various workforce management functions into a single system, helping companies streamline their operations and reduce costs.
Co-founded by Akeed Azmi and David Reche, both of whom have experience scaling teams at Kitopi and Careem, Cercli was created to fill the need for a comprehensive solution to manage the complexities of a growing international workforce. “The cost of workforce-related compliance is a major challenge for C-suite executives in our region. Cercli was built to replace multiple isolated systems, serving as the singular modern payroll and employee data platform,” said Akeed Azmi, co-founder of Cercli.
Since its launch earlier in 2024, Cercli has experienced rapid growth, expanding by 25% month-over-month. The platform has processed over $23 million in salaries for employees across 31 countries, proving its value to enterprises struggling with outdated systems that often lead to errors, delays, and compliance issues.
Anamitra Banerji, co-founder and managing partner of Afore Capital, expressed confidence in Cercli’s future: “Akeed and David are addressing one of the region’s largest challenges—managing a global workforce while meeting compliance requirements. This investment reflects our belief in the untapped potential of the MENA region and the transformative impact Cercli is poised to make.”
Cercli’s platform is engineered to meet the specific needs of its customers, with a strong emphasis on compliance with local regulatory changes and labor laws. The company has developed integrations across HR, finance, accounting, legal, and IT software, allowing businesses to seamlessly integrate their systems with Cercli, which acts as the central hub for workforce management.
Amir Farha, founder of COTU Ventures, highlighted the importance of technology-powered startups in driving economic transformation in the Middle East. “With businesses building diverse global teams, the need for a solution like Cercli is imperative. Akeed and David have demonstrated incredible growth and have a solid track record, which gives us great confidence in their ability to succeed.”
As Cercli continues to expand, it remains focused on building a strong product and engineering team, with 80% of its workforce dedicated to these areas. David Reche, co-founder of Cercli, noted, “With the backing of our new investors, we will double down on growth and attract world-class talent to accelerate the adoption of Cercli across the region.”
Cercli’s ability to attract top talent from both regional unicorns like Kitopi and Careem, as well as global tech giants such as Microsoft, ADP, and Accenture, underscores its commitment to innovation and growth as it aims to revolutionize workforce management in MENA.
About Cercli
Cercli is MENA’s modern payroll and employee data platform. MENA enterprises still manually manage payroll, personnel data, papers, onboarding checklists, and more. Spreadsheets, legacy business solutions, and outdated HR solutions lead to human mistake, fraud, inadequate compliance, poor transparency, and more.
