Jem raises $8.4m Series A led by Quona Capital
The South Africa-based company provides workforce management tools for deskless teams through WhatsApp.
** For the best experience, download the free Africa Private Equity News app Android | iOS **
Jem, a South Africa-based workforce management platform for deskless teams, has raised $8.4 million in Series A funding led by Quona Capital. The round included participation from the University Technology Fund, E4E, Next176/FutureGrowth and angel investors, including former Old Mutual chief executive officer Iain Williamson.
“We backed Jem because it sits at a powerful intersection: essential workforce software that lets companies build a deeper relationship with their people, trusted employer distribution, and embedded financial services that save everyday South Africans meaningful amounts,” says Johan Bosini, venture partner at Quona Capital. “Its WhatsApp-based platform is becoming important infrastructure through which employers communicate with, manage and support their workforces.”
“Jem is the workforce management platform for deskless employees,” says Jem’s co-founder and CEO, Simon Ellis. “Employers have spent years stitching together a dozen disparate systems to run their teams. Jem is now the one place they can do all of it.”
Founded in 2020 as SmartWage and rebranded as Jem in 2022, the company initially enabled employees to draw wages they had already earned through WhatsApp, with funds arriving within 90 minutes. It has since expanded to cover payslips, onboarding, time and attendance, leave and workforce communication.
Want to know who is raising, investing, and exiting in Africa? Get Africa Private Equity News’ monthly Dealmaker’s Log – a database of reported investment deals, exits, and fundraising closes. Access the latest Dealmaker’s Log here