PayFit, the payroll and HR platform serving over 12,000 UK small and medium-sized businesses, has closed an £85 million Series E funding round led by Eurazeo and General Atlantic, with participation from existing backers Bpifrance and Accel. The company said the capital will be used to accelerate the rollout of embedded financial products — including earned wage access, automated pension contributions, and SME insurance — that sit alongside its core payroll processing engine.

UK country manager Johanna Sheridan said the fundraise reflects PayFit's ambition to become the financial operating system for UK employers. "Payroll is the single largest cash outflow for most small businesses, yet it remains disconnected from broader financial planning," Sheridan said. "By embedding savings, lending, and insurance products directly into the payroll workflow, we can help business owners make better financial decisions without adding complexity." PayFit now processes over £2.8 billion in annual UK payroll and claims a 97 per cent client retention rate.

The raise comes as the payroll fintech space attracts growing investor interest in the UK, driven by regulatory changes including the expansion of auto-enrolment pension obligations and the introduction of mandatory payrolling of benefits in kind from April 2026. Competitors including Pento, Onfolk, and Payescape are also building embedded finance features, while incumbent providers such as Sage and Xero have begun acquiring fintech capabilities. Analysts at GP Bullhound estimate the European payroll software market is worth €8.5 billion and growing at 14 per cent annually.