Apis Partners invests US$50 million in BIPO to accelerate global payroll, HR and workforce finance expansion

Private equity firm Apis Partners has invested US$50 million in Singapore-headquartered BIPO, marking a significant move aimed at accelerating the payroll and workforce management provider’s international expansion, acquisitions strategy, and AI-powered product development.

The investment comes from Apis Growth Fund III, which recently closed at US$1.23 billion. The funding is expected to support BIPO’s expansion into high-growth international markets, strengthen its global payroll capabilities through mergers and acquisitions, and deepen the integration of artificial intelligence and embedded financial services across its platform.

The deal underscores growing investor interest in payroll and workforce infrastructure companies as organizations increasingly seek compliant, technology-enabled solutions to manage globally distributed workforces.

Founded more than 15 years ago and headquartered in Singapore, BIPO provides Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS), Global Payroll Outsourcing (GPO), Employer of Record (EOR), and workforce analytics services. The company operates through more than 50 offices worldwide, serves over 5,600 enterprise and SME clients, and processes nearly US$2 billion in payroll payments annually across more than 170 countries and regions through its proprietary payroll engines.

According to Apis, the investment aligns with its strategy of backing technology-enabled financial infrastructure businesses that support economic participation and financial inclusion.

“Payroll and workforce management sit at the core of how companies operate across borders and are among the most mission-critical elements of the global financial system, requiring deep regulatory understanding, precision and consistent execution,” said Matteo Stefanel, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Apis Partners.

He added, “BIPO has built an exceptionally strong platform across Asia, combining deep regulatory connectivity, operational scale and trusted delivery in markets where accuracy and compliance are non-negotiable. This investment reflects Apis’ continued expansion across the broader financial infrastructure ecosystem, including adjacent areas such as embedded finance and payments, where we see long-term structural growth.”

As part of the partnership, Apis will support BIPO’s global M&A ambitions while helping the company expand its embedded financial services offerings, including treasury and foreign exchange capabilities.

BIPO also plans to increase investment in artificial intelligence, particularly through agentic workflows designed to automate payroll and HR processes while maintaining the human oversight required for compliance-sensitive operations.

Highlighting the company’s scale, Udayan Goyal, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Apis Partners, said BIPO has spent more than a decade building the infrastructure required to deliver payroll and HR services across Asia.

“Today, BIPO supports around 900,000 employees globally, processes close to US$2 billion in salaries, and serves close to 6,000 corporate clients – delivering compliant, transparent payroll that brings more workers into the formal financial system and expands access to financial services,” Goyal said.

“At Apis, we focus on backing platforms that form part of the underlying financial infrastructure of the global economy, where technology can drive both commercial outcomes and systemic impact. BIPO has already demonstrated strong customer momentum across multiple geographies, and we are excited to support the next phase of its international growth and help build a truly global payroll and HR infrastructure champion.”

For BIPO, the fresh capital is expected to accelerate that transition. “We are partnering with Apis at a pivotal moment for BIPO,” said Michael Chen, Founder and CEO of BIPO.

“Their deep expertise in financial services and strong track record in cross-border M&A position us to accelerate our global expansion with greater speed and discipline.”

Chen said the investment would enable the company to expand into strategic growth markets while strengthening its AI, automation, and embedded finance capabilities.

“We see a clear opportunity to evolve into a core piece of global employment and financial infrastructure supporting the distributed workforce,” he said.

“Together with Apis, we are focused on building the next phase of BIPO, a truly global, AI-embedded platform enabling companies and talent to operate seamlessly across borders.”