C

Check

Embedded payroll services for software platforms

Overview

CheckHQ provides embedded payroll services to software platforms, allowing them to offer payroll within their apps without building a payroll stack from scratch. It supplies the back-end payroll engine, compliance, and related services, while partners handle the front-end customer experience. This platform-level integration helps vertical SaaS, workforce management, and staffing/EOR platforms enter payroll quickly and scale revenue and retention. The goal is to help software platforms build and grow their own payroll businesses, increasing revenue and customer lifetime value for both partners and their end customers.

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About Check

Simplify's Rating
Why Check is rated
B-
Rated B on Competitive Edge
Rated B on Growth Potential
Rated C on Differentiation

Industries

Enterprise SoftwareFintechFinancial Services

Company Size

51-200

Company Stage

Series C

Total Funding

$120M

Headquarters

New York City, New York

Founded

2019

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Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Wave's April 3 payroll rollout exposed Check to 300,000 small businesses.
  • Novo Payroll and Basic Capital broaden Check's attach rate inside partner workflows.
  • Check's 2026 fraud-monitoring and embedded support tools reduce launch friction for new partners.

What critics are saying

  • Gusto Embedded and Rippling compress Check's pricing power and platform differentiation in 2026.
  • Payroll compliance failures hit taxes, garnishments, and filings instantly across all partner platforms.
  • If partners like Wave or Novo switch stacks, Check loses entire customer programs.

What makes Check unique

  • Check powers 65+ payroll products and 90+ platforms, per 2026 materials.
  • Stripe-led Series C funding backs Check's infrastructure moat and compliance-heavy positioning.
  • Basic Capital's September 16, 2026 integration shows Check extends payroll into adjacent benefits.

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Funding

Total Funding

$120M

Above

Industry Average

Funded Over

5 Rounds

Notable Investors:
Series C funding is usually for startups that are doing well and are looking for more money to fuel major growth, such as acquiring other companies, expanding into global markets, or launching new product lines. Investors typically include larger venture capital firms and private equity.
Series C Funding Comparison
Above Average

Industry standards

$50M
$50M
$62M
$75M
$100M

Benefits

  • Home office stipend: $1k stipend for your home office setup, and $100 per month for internet and cell.
  • PTO & sick leave: Recharge and stay healthy with flexible PTO and sick leave.
  • Learning budget: Buy books, take classes, and attend conferences with a $2k per year learning budget.
  • Weekly pay: Every Friday is payday! Just one perk of being your own payroll provider.
  • Paid family leave: 16 weeks of paid leave for new parents and flexible return-to-work options.
  • Health benefits: High quality health, dental, and vision insurance coverage.

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

-5%

1 year growth

-2%

2 year growth

-4%
Yahoo Finance
Sep 16th, 2026
Basic Capital partners with Check to embed 401(k) into payroll SaaS platforms

Basic Capital has partnered with Check to offer embedded 401(k) plans through Check's payroll API. Companies using Check's payroll infrastructure can now add Basic Capital's retirement platform directly into their existing products without separate integration. The partnership connects Basic Capital's retirement infrastructure to Check's API layer, allowing contributions, deductions, and recordkeeping to run on the same data as payroll. This eliminates the need for separate file-based feeds or third-party referrals. "Payroll platforms are increasingly the place where employers expect to manage every part of compensation, and retirement shouldn't be the exception," said Brandon Angelini, Head of Partnerships at Basic Capital. The solution is designed to make retirement benefits more accessible to small and mid-sized businesses. Basic Capital's platform includes expanded investment options, self-directed brokerage windows, and advanced tax strategies integrated into existing payroll systems.

Yahoo Finance
Sep 16th, 2026
Basic Capital partners with Check to bring embedded 401(k) to workforce SaaS platforms.

Basic Capital partners with Check to bring embedded 401(k) to workforce SaaS platforms. Business Wire Companies building payroll products on Check's API can now offer employees a built-in 401(k) through Basic Capital, with no separate integration required NEW YORK, September 16, 2026-(BUSINESS WIRE)-Basic Capital, the technology-driven retirement platform, today announced a partnership with Check, the payroll infrastructure company known for its robust API and front-end modules. The partnership lets any Check partner add a 401(k) plan directly into its existing payroll product. Basic Capital's retirement infrastructure connects to Check's API layer, so contributions, deductions, and recordkeeping run on the same data as payroll rather than through a separate file-based feed. For the vertical SaaS companies and HR platforms that already use Check to power payroll, this means Basic Capital's 401(k) offering can be added as a feature of their product, not bolted on as a third-party referral. Retirement benefits have historically been difficult for small and mid-sized businesses to access, in part because most payroll and HR platforms haven't had an efficient way to offer them. Basic Capital and Check are partnering to give platforms access to a 401(k) platform designed for modern teams. Basic Capital offers expanded investment options, an optional self-directed brokerage window and more advanced tax strategies as a native part of the payroll infrastructure these platforms already run on. "Payroll platforms are increasingly the place where employers expect to manage every part of compensation, and retirement shouldn't be the exception," said Brandon Angelini, Head of Partnerships at Basic Capital. "Partnering with Check lets us put a modern 401(k) directly into the products employers are already using, instead of asking them to stitch together another vendor." "We built Check so that platforms could create payroll products tailored to the businesses they serve, without having to build the infrastructure themselves," said Ian Zapolsky, Chief Growth Officer of Check. "With this new partnership, our partners can offer a 401(k) through Basic Capital without leaving the product they've built on Check." Platforms built on Check can enable Basic Capital's embedded 401(k) as an add-on to their existing integration, with plan setup, contribution processing, and compliance monitoring handled by Basic Capital's platform. About Basic Capital Basic Capital is a technology-driven retirement platform built to help companies offer a modern, flexible 401(k) experience. The platform pairs streamlined recordkeeping and administration with an open-architecture investment lineup, giving employers a fully bundled solution that is simple to run and participants a plan that's easy to navigate. For more information about Basic Capital, visit www.basiccapital.com.

PYMNTS
Apr 4th, 2024
Workflow Automation, Flexible Financing Top This Week In B2B Innovation

It is a testament to the business-to-business (B2B) landscape that firms tend to pivot toward, and not away, from it. After all, you hear a lot more about one-time business-to-consumer (B2C) firms embracing B2B channels than vice-versa. But that doesn’t mean that the B2B landscape, for all its attractions, is an easy one to thrive within. Fortunately, a suite of modern innovations is transforming the landscape by helping B2B firms solve long-standing legacy frictions, as well as keep an eye on what can’t be controlled for — at least not yet. That’s why PYMNTS keeps an ear to the ground, listening for all of the latest initiatives. The top themes we heard this week were around the benefits of workflow automation; the need of smaller firms for flexible financing solutions; and why operational visibility is at its most important when uncertainty is the only certainty

PYMNTS
Apr 3rd, 2024
Wave Teams With Check To Upgrade Small Business Payroll

Payroll infrastructure company Check has teamed with Wave, a money management platform for small businesses. The collaboration, announced Wednesday (April 3), will let the more than 300,000 small businesses using Wave access “full-service payroll functionality” in all 50 U.S. states. “Payroll has long been a growth hurdle for small businesses due to its complexity,” Check said in a news release. “There are 11,000 U.S. payroll jurisdictions, and the administrative burdens that come with proper tax calculation, form filing, and remittance can be stifling for small business owners who are often wearing multiple hats across HR, marketing and more.”

Business Wire
Apr 3rd, 2024
Check To Power Wave’S Expanded Payroll Offering

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Check, the leading payroll infrastructure company that pioneered the ability for platforms to embed payroll into their products, today announced its partnership with Wave, the one-stop money management platform for small business owners. Over 300,000 small businesses that use Wave will soon have access to best-in-class full-service payroll functionality across all 50 U.S. states.Payroll has long been a growth hurdle for small businesses due to its complexity. There are 11,000 U.S. payroll jurisdictions, and the administrative burdens that come with proper tax calculation, form filing, and remittance can be stifling for small business owners who are often wearing multiple hats across HR, marketing and more. Check’s API abstracts the complexity required to both build and run payroll

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