Salary Hero, a Bangkok company that lets employees draw wages they have already earned before payday, said on 14 October 2026 that it had raised a $7.6m Series A.
Cento Ventures led the round, with Malaysia's Kairous Capital and M Venture Partners taking part. FF News reported that SSC Venture Partners and early backer 1982 Ventures also invested. No valuation was disclosed.
Separately from the equity, Salary Hero said it had expanded its credit facility with regional banks and lenders to $10m. That debt funds the cash the company advances to workers before their employers' payroll settles.
“We started Salary Hero because the financial system in Southeast Asia is broken for the people who can least afford it.”Prabhav Rakhra, Co-founder and Managing Director, Salary Hero
What Salary Hero does
Salary Hero works through employers. Companies connect it to their HR and payroll systems, and their staff can then withdraw part of the pay they have earned so far in the month. The app also offers budgeting tools and more than 50 financial education classes, and the company says it integrates with more than 25 enterprise HR software providers. e27 reported that the platform is ISO 27001 certified.
In Thailand it serves more than 100 companies and over 300,000 employees, mostly in manufacturing, logistics, hospitality and retail. The company estimates that its users have avoided about $150m in loans from predatory lenders and says client companies have cut frontline staff turnover by 15% to 25%. e27 noted that the company did not explain how it arrived at either figure.
The company was founded by Prabhav Rakhra and Jonathan Nohr, who both serve as managing directors. Rakhra told Fintech News Singapore that a factory worker in Thailand should not have to pay more than 20% a month to cover a gap in the middle of the month.
What the money is for
The equity will fund a formal launch in Malaysia, where Salary Hero began operating in the second quarter of 2026 and is building a local team. It aims to sign 50 corporate partners there by the end of 2027. Nohr said existing regional clients with Malaysian operations give the company a running start.
It will also pay for an AI layer for HR departments. According to Fintech News Singapore, the tools analyse anonymised workforce data to help employers spot staff who are at risk of leaving.
A competitive market in Southeast Asia
Earned wage access has drawn several funded players in the region. e27 pointed to Paywatch in Malaysia, which raised a $20m Series A from Kakao Pay and Artem Ventures, Indonesia's wagely, which raised $23m in 2024, and Vietnam's GIMO, which raised a $17.1m Series A in 2023. Indonesian rival GajiGesa was bought by Kredivo for nearly $12m, according to e27.
Salary Hero cites household finance data to make its case for Malaysia. People Matters, citing a 2024 Bank Negara Malaysia survey, reported that 61% of Malaysians struggled to raise RM1,000 (about $237) in an emergency, up from 47% in 2021. e27 added that Malaysia's Home Ministry recorded 1,965 violent cases linked to illegal moneylenders between 2020 and 2024.
Company website: salary-hero.com