Checkr, a US-based background checking service provider backed by internet and technology conglomerate Alphabet, received $100m yesterday in a series C round led by funds and accounts managed by T. Rowe Price.
Venture capital firm Accel and seed-focused firm Y Combinator also participated in the round, both as existing investors. It brought Checkr’s funding to almost $150m altogether.
Checkr uses its technology to perform about 1 million background checks for a total of more than 10,000 clients, and it disclosed the funding alongside news it has secured human resources provider Adecco, insurance firm Allstate and ride hailing service Lyft as customers.
The funding will support the company’s move into the enterprise space, as it seeks to begin supplying its technology to help businesses recruit more effectively, as well as investment in its artificial intelligence technology and a hiring drive that will almost double the size of its team.
Y Combinator provided an initial $120,000 for Checkr when the company graduated from its accelerator in 2014. Accel led Checkr’s $9m series A round the same year, investing alongside Alphabet unit GV, Khosla Ventures, SV Angel, Data Collective and various angel investors.
Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund subsequently led the company’s $40m series B round in early 2016, which included Accel and fellow VC firm Institutional Venture Partners. It has not disclosed the valuation at which it has raised any of its funding.
Checkr CEO Daniel Yanisse said: “Checkr’s initial focus was on-demand companies where speed to hire and accuracy of background checks were critical. Now, four years later, we are seeing a continued shift to flexible work that companies and applicants must navigate.
“Today’s investment allows us to help the enterprise sector be successful in this new world of work by modernising their background screening practices, optimising their hiring to attract the talent they need.”