Personio hits US$8.5b valuation in latest fundraising round

PERSONIO, one of Germany's largest startups, raised an additional US$200 million in a funding round that pushed the value of the human-resources software maker to US$8.5 billion.

Greenoaks Capital Management, a San Francisco-based venture firm that's also backed Stripe, TripActions and Robinhood Markets, led the investment, which raised US$470 million in total, Personio said Wednesday (Jun 22).

The deal marks an increase in the Munich-based company's US$6.3 billion valuation last year. Still, Co-Founder and chief executive officer, Hanno Renner said investors had more questions this time about the stability of the business in light of a slowdown in the tech industry.

"As long as our customers employ people who need to be paid, for example, and who take vacation, our software remains in use," Renner said. The company provides services to clients in a variety of industries and targets small and mid-sized businesses, he said.

An initial public offering is the "clearest outcome" for Personio, but the company isn't in a rush to file, he said.

Following the fundraising, Renner said that Personio is "focusing strongly on organic growth", though he didn't rule out more deals. Personio bought Berlin-based Back, which automates HR processes, last month. BLOOMBERG