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PaidHR, closed a $1.8M seed round to accelerate their mission of simplifying payroll and people management for African businesses, a major milestone in today’s tough fundraising market.
We had a chat with Seye Bandele, PaidHR’s co-founder, for a conversation that went beyond the headline. He shared how the round came together, the shifts in investor conversations, what’s stayed constant from day one, and what this raise really means for the team, the product, and the space they are building in.
Q: What are the key differences you noticed between raising this round versus the previous round in 2023?
"It's a number of things, really. First of all, I think we truly underestimated the impact of fundraising on a startup. Especially when things are still scrappy and founder-led, and an extended period of the founder not being hands on can really hurt the company strategy, so I guess the advice is to start fundraising way ahead of schedule because no matter how much time you think it will take, it will definitely take more. And in terms of the market, what we noticed is that contrary to popular belief, there is still a lot of interest in Africa, and investors are just a lot more patient to find the companies solving real problems before deciding to fund."
Q: How did you approach aligning investor interest with your long-term vision?
"You have to remain visible and present in the mind of the investor. And that is staying close through regular updates, open and transparent communication through the good and bad times. Also, you must learn to be great at telling the story of what your company will eventually become and getting investors and other stakeholders to really believe in it."
Q: Was there a moment in the process, positive or challenging, that shaped how you approached closing the round?
"Raising is a slog no matter what and signals from some investors can be murky at best, but at the end of day, investors are most clear when there's demand against the deal. Founders can quickly flip the script when commitments are secured and it changes the conversations going forward. Also, it got to a time when we had to stop spraying and praying, and just focus on a closed set of investors who had shown interest."
Q: When founders come to you for advice on raising a seed round today, what’s one tactical piece of advice you’d share from your own experience?
"Raising money is just like a regular sales funnel. Prospect properly, look for the right fit in investors that are active in your area and engage them right now, build relationships but hold out on asking for investment, just feed them updates to show momentum, and be honest about setbacks. Note who is responding and offering help, those are your champions and they will be far more likely to commit when you ask."
Looking Ahead
As PaidHR moves into this next chapter, the focus remains clear: building tools that make it easier for African businesses to manage their teams, stay compliant, and scale with confidence.
