SmartHR raises $140 million in Series E funding

SmartHRa Tokyo, Japan-based provider of a cloud-native human resource management platform, has raised $140 million in Series E funding

The round was led by TOKYO-KKR and Teachers’ Venture Growth (TVG) with participation from existing shareholders.

The company intends to use the funds to accelerate its growth, including through the development of new solutions, talent acquisition, and organic and inorganic growth strategies.

Founded in 2013, SmartHR is a cloud-native HR management platform that offers a range of technology-enabled HR management solutions focused on employee leadership and management, growth, talent management and employee productivity. It serves a wide range of organizations including large enterprises and SMEs with its comprehensive range of solutions.

FinSMEs

01.07.2024

TOKYO-KKR, a leading global investment firm, and Teachers’ Venture Growth (TVG), the late-stage venture capital and growth arm of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, today announced the signing of definitive agreements under which KKR (on behalf of the funds it manages) and TVG will jointly lead a US$140 million (JPY 21.4 billion) Series E financing round for SmartHR (the “Company”), a leading cloud-native human resource management platform in Japan, with participation from existing shareholders.

The investment will be used to accelerate SmartHR’s growth, including through the development of new solutions, talent acquisition, and organic and inorganic growth strategies.

Founded in 2013, SmartHR is a cloud-native HR management platform that provides a suite of technology-enabled HR management solutions focused on employee leadership and management, growth, talent management, and employee productivity. With its comprehensive suite of solutions, SmartHR serves a broad spectrum of organizations, including large enterprises and SMEs.

Mukul Chawla, Partner and Head of Growth Equity, Asia Pacific, KKRsaid: “As one of Japan’s leading HR software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms, SmartHR plays a critical role in enabling the country’s pursuit of greater workforce productivity while accelerating digitalization and cloud penetration. With our technology growth strategy, we aim to support innovative, disruptive local champions with our expertise, best practices and networks on KKR’s global platform. SmartHR is an exceptional example of Japan’s new economy and we are excited to partner with the company’s management, board and TVG to support SmartHR in the next phase of its growth.”

Olivia Steedman, Executive Managing Director and Global Head, Teachers’ Venture Growthsaid: “SmartHR has demonstrated innovative ways to help companies of all sizes improve the management and development of their workforce. As Japanese companies increasingly transform their operations with digital solutions, SmartHR is well positioned to support a variety of their work management needs. We look forward to working with KKR to accelerate SmartHR’s growth trajectory while leveraging our global expertise to find ways to be a value-added partner.”

KKR is making its investment as part of its Asia Next Generation Technology (Asia NGT) strategy. This is KKR’s latest technology investment in Japan, which includes: Yayoia provider of financial and accounting software for SMEs; NetStarsthe operator of Japan’s largest QR code payment portal; and DataXa marketing SaaS platform. Other investments by Asia NGT include: GrowSaria B2B e-commerce platform for SMEs in the Philippines; KiotVieta SaaS platform for SMEs in Vietnam; Inaugurateda digital identity provider in Indonesia; MUSINSAan online fashion platform in Korea; Lenskartan omnichannel eyewear retailer in India; and Advanced navigationa developer of AI-powered robotics in Australia.

About KKR

KKR is a leading global investment firm providing alternative asset management, capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR seeks to achieve attractive investment returns by adopting a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people and supporting the growth of its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors mutual funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR’s insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the direction of Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For more information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com. For more information about Global Atlantic Financial Group, visit Global Atlantic Financial Group’s website at www.globalatlantic.com.

About Teachers’ Venture Growth

Teachers’ Venture Growth (TVG) focuses on late-stage venture capital and growth capital investments in cutting-edge technology companies globally. We work with founders who have ambitious goals and want to expand their product offerings, expand geographically and become market leaders. We think long-term and invest actively to build better companies and a better world. We think globally and act locally through our direct presence in Asia, North America and Europe.

TVG is part of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (Ontario Teachers’), a global investor with net assets of $247.5 billion as of December 31, 2023. We invest in more than 50 countries in a broad range of assets, including public and private equity, fixed income, credit, commodities, natural resources, infrastructure, real estate and venture capital, to provide retirement income to 340,000 working members and retirees.

Our more than 450 investment professionals operate in the world’s major financial centers and have extensive expertise across a broad range of sectors and industries. We are a fully funded defined benefit pension plan and have delivered an annual net return of 9.3% since the plan’s inception in 1990. At Ontario Teachers’, we don’t just invest to earn a return, we invest to create a better future for the teachers we serve, the businesses we support and the world we live in.

For more information, visit otpp.com/teachersventuregrowth and follow us on LinkedIn.

About SmartHR

SmartHR was founded on January 23, 2013. In November 2015, the company launched the cloud-based HR and work management software “SmartHR”. In addition to features that enable paperless HR and work processes and improve operational efficiency, it offers talent management features such as “performance evaluation” and “job simulation” that support corporate strategy using collected data. It also offers a “recruitment management” feature that unifies recruitment activities and employee registration.

In addition, SmartHR offers a wide range of services that meet the most diverse customer needs through extensive integration with external systems and the “SmartHR Plus” application store. SmartHR aims to eliminate social problems related to work and support the increase in productivity of all workers. The goal is to create a society in which everyone can work in their own way.