US-based fintech Payoneer has recently announced the acquisition of Singapore-based global HR and payroll startup, Skuad, for USD 61 million in cash. Payoneer is committed to pay up to USD 10 million additionally, contingent on if Skuad meets several performance goals within the first 18 months after the acquisition.

Another extra USD 10 million in restricted stock units will be paid by Payoneer so, in total, the US fintech will be paying USD 81 million to take over Skuad. The journey of Skuad in the fintech world Founded in 2019, the company aimed to simplify international hiring and has since focused on helping SME employers in over 16 countries handle issues related to distributed teams, including variations in regulations from one market to another, international payrolls, and remote onboarding. In a world that was slowly but securely switching from in-house employment to full remote contracts, Skuad made a name for itself for navigating the intricate webs of cross-border hires.

The Singaporean HR startup managed to raise around USD 19 million in venture funding from a series of investors, including Argor Capital, Beenext, and NMVM, as well as several angel investors before being acquired by Payoneer. The company is geared towards SMEs that operate internationally, particularly in emerging countries, which made it a logic acquisition from Payoneer. At the same time, remote work can become the new norm in a post-pandemic world, especially with most companies being under increasing pressure to reduce labour costs and boost productivity.

We can also notice a shift from freelance models to companies looking for scalable solutions to meet the new global economic challenges, and Skuad was the right fit for Payoneer to fill part of this gap. More about Payoneer The US fintech counts for over 2,100 employees, whom will be joined Skuad’s 200 employees as part of the acquisition process. Moreover, Payoneer announced a revenue of USD 240 million for the previous fiscal year, up 16% YoY and plans to integrate Skuad’s payroll and contract managing offering into its offering.

Payoneer went public in 2021 via a SPAC merger backed by the fintech founder of Bancorp. .