# Cercli **Source:** https://geo.sig.ai/brands/cercli **Vertical:** HR Tech **Subcategory:** HR Software **Tier:** Leader **Website:** cercli.com **Last Updated:** 2026-04-14 ## Summary Dubai UAE YC W23 Rippling-for-MENA HR/payroll at $100M+ annual payroll across 50 countries with 10x revenue; $16M total ($12M Picus Series A Oct 2025 + $4M Afore/YC seed) competing with Bayzat for MENA multi-country workforce management. ## Company Overview Cercli is a Dubai, UAE-based HR and payroll platform for the Middle East and North Africa — backed by Y Combinator (W23) with $16 million in total funding including a $4 million seed in September 2024 led by Afore Capital with Y Combinator, COTU Ventures, and Rebel Fund (with angels from Ramp, Rappi, Kitopi, Careem, and Rippling), plus a $12 million Series A in October 2025 led by Picus Capital — providing businesses operating across MENA and globally with a Rippling-style workforce management platform purpose-built for the region's multi-country payroll complexity, processing $100+ million in annual payroll across 50 countries and achieving 10x revenue scaling. Founded to address the absence of a modern, unified HR stack for MENA-headquartered companies, Cercli delivers AI-native payroll with agent-compatible architecture for the region. Cercli's MENA HR platform addresses the regulatory fragmentation that makes payroll for Middle Eastern companies uniquely complex: a UAE-headquartered company with employees in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, and Pakistan faces distinct labor laws in each jurisdiction (UAE Wage Protection System requirements, Saudi Nitaqat nationalization quotas, Egyptian social insurance registration, gratuity calculation differences), multiple currencies with exchange rate sensitivity, and visa/residency status tracking that ties directly to payroll eligibility. MENA-region companies have historically relied on country-specific payroll vendors, manual spreadsheet consolidation, and HR teams who specialize in each country's requirements — creating the same operational fragmentation that Rippling solved for US companies. Cercli's rewritten payroll engine (built from the ground up for MENA regulatory complexity rather than adapted from a US-centric system) handles the multi-country compliance layer while providing the unified employee record, onboarding, and workforce analytics that MENA businesses need. In 2025, Cercli competes in the MENA HR software, multi-country payroll, and workforce management market with Bayzat (UAE HR platform, $52M raised), Workday (NASDAQ: WDAY, global HR platform, $8.4B revenue), and Rippling (global workforce management, $1.2B raised at $13.5B valuation) for MENA-headquartered and regional business workforce management and multi-country payroll platform adoption. Afore Capital's seed leadership (Afore specializes in pre-seed enterprise software) and Picus Capital's Series A reflect European and regional VC conviction in MENA HR infrastructure. The Rippling, Careem, and Kitopi angel investors provide both operational expertise and direct customer network access. The 2025 strategy focuses on Saudi Arabia market expansion (the GCC's largest economy with Saudization compliance requirements), building the AI payroll compliance agent for real-time regulatory monitoring, and growing the multinational company MENA payroll use case (global companies paying staff across MENA through a single platform). ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Cercli? Cercli is a Dubai-based HR and payroll company founded in 2023 that is building a Rippling-like solution specifically for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The company offers an AI-native global workforce management platform that enables multi-country payroll processing across the MENA region and beyond. ### What products and services does Cercli offer? Cercli provides MENA-focused HR and payroll solutions with multi-country payroll capabilities and agent-compatible systems. Their platform features a rewritten payroll engine designed for global workforce management across the MENA region. ### Who is Cercli for? Cercli targets businesses operating in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region that need comprehensive HR and payroll solutions. The platform serves companies managing workforces across multiple countries, currently processing payroll for businesses in 50 countries. ### When was Cercli founded? Cercli was founded in 2023 and participated in Y Combinator's Winter 2023 (W23) batch. ### Where is Cercli based? Cercli is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. ### How much funding has Cercli raised? Cercli has raised $16M in total funding, including a $4M seed round in September 2024 led by Afore Capital (with participation from Y Combinator, COTU Ventures, Rebel Fund, and executives from Ramp, Rappi, Kitopi, Careem, and Rippling) and a $12M Series A round in October 2025 led by Picus Capital. ### What are Cercli's key achievements and metrics? Cercli processes over $100M in annual payroll for businesses across 50 countries and has achieved 10x revenue scaling. The company has successfully raised $16M in total funding since its founding in 2023. ### What technology approach does Cercli use? Cercli has built an AI-native platform with agent-compatible systems and a rewritten payroll engine from the ground up. Their technology stack is designed to deliver Rippling-like functionality specifically optimized for the MENA region. ### How can I get started with Cercli? Based on the provided information, specific contact details are not available. Cercli is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and serves businesses operating in the MENA region and across 50 countries globally. ### What are Cercli's recent developments? Cercli most recently closed a $12M Series A funding round in October 2025 led by Picus Capital. The company has scaled to processing over $100M in annual payroll and achieved 10x revenue growth while expanding to serve businesses across 50 countries. ## Tags b2b, saas, hr-tech, global, middle-east, ai-powered --- *Data from geo.sig.ai Brand Intelligence Database. Updated 2026-04-14.*