(Tech in Asia, Apr 2022) Payd, a Malaysia-based earned wage access service, has raised US$1.7 million in a seed round led by IFS Capital.

The round also saw participation from 1982 Ventures, The Hive Southeast Asia, Delight Capital and Antler, as well as several angel investors.

Founded by Justin Kong and Darvesh Daswani in 2020, Payd is a B2B platform that allows employees to receive up to 50% of their salaries as they earn it instead of asking for a salary advance. It currently has over 20,000 employee sign-ups.

The company aims to use the funding to expand its Southeast Asian operations outside Malaysia and launch more services

IFS Capital CEO Renchun Zeng said earned wage access services resolve some of employers’ biggest pain points, helping with employee well-being and retention. According to a Tech in Asia analysis, the earned wage access sector could potentially be a billion-dollar market, with Indonesia leading the charge.