Shefi Ben-Hutta
Editor at Coverager
Checkr

Checkr raises $160 million investment led by T. Rowe Price

Checkr announced a $160 million round of funding at a valuation of $2.2 billion. The equity round was led by funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., joined by Bond, Coatue, and long-time investors Accel, Y Combinator, and IVP. This round is in addition to the $150 million previously raised.

Checkr will use the capital in three key areas:

  • Expanding the functionality of its platform, which allows businesses to reduce bias in their hiring process while onboarding the best talent in a safe, compliant manner;
  • Improving accuracy and fairness while creating new products to better serve customers; and
  • Developing new international capabilities to align with the expansion plans of our customers operating globally.

With an estimated 68 million contingent workers in the U.S. alone, the way we work is changing. The flexible workforce is now growing at a rate of three times the overall workforce, and by 2023, more than half of the workforce will be independent workers. Given record-low unemployment, companies of all sizes and industries are adopting higher-velocity hiring practices to compete in the war for talent.

“With consumer’s consent and control of their data, we believe in a better future where companies use data fairly and accurately to expand access to job opportunities for workers from diverse backgrounds,” said Checkr Co-Founder and CEO Daniel Yanisse. “By bringing Checkr into new markets and building new hiring products, we can help more companies and workers around the world adapt to the future economy.”

Since its founding in 2014, Checkr has grown from a background check API to a platform that has processed more than 42 million background checks on job seekers for thousands of employers. Checkr is building an advanced hiring system for the new ways we work, which includes:

  • Artificial Intelligence Platform: Using machine learning that reduces bias in the hiring process by filtering out records that employers define as irrelevant, resulting in fairer and more compliant assessment of candidates.
  • Continuous Check: Dynamic workforce monitoring that allows companies to receive continuous updates about candidates’ potentially disqualifying criminal records, ensuring that workers always meet their safety standards.
  • Connect IDV: Identity verification and facial biometrics that allows businesses to combine their choice of identity verification vendors with background checks on the same platform to mitigate identity fraud.

“We first invested in Checkr because of our belief in the potential of the founders, and the opportunity to disrupt this category with an API-first approach,” said Rich Wong, Partner at Accel. “In a short time, Daniel Yanisse and the Checkr team have become a critical player in the changing landscape of work, and at a faster face than I could have expected. We’re proud to be supporters of Checkr as they continue to expand and further transform the approach to hiring.”

Today Checkr supports the hiring needs of thousands of businesses, including new customers Elwood Staffing, PrideStaff, and One Call. Representing a broad range of industries, these companies join the ranks of Adecco, Uber, Hot Topic and many others who rely on Checkr’s technology to assess and onboard talent more fairly and efficiently.