RemotePass Secures $17.4M to Accelerate Global Expansion from MENA Base

RemotePass, the UAE-founded global employment and payroll platform, has secured $17.4 million in a Series B round as it sets its sights firmly on further international growth. The funding was led by EBRD Venture Capital, with participation from 500 Global and existing backers including Oraseya Capital, 212 VC, Access Bridge Ventures and Khwarizmi Ventures. Earlier investors such as BECO Capital, Endeavor Catalyst and Wamda Capital also continue to support the company.

Founded in 2021, RemotePass has carved out a niche by focusing deeply on the Middle East and North Africa, a region that global employment platforms have often underestimated. It offers 24/7 support in Arabic and English, handles complex local labour laws, and has built payment rails in markets where cross-border payroll can be, frankly, a bit of a faff. Today, it works with more than 35,000 workers across 150-plus countries and has processed over $800 million in cross-border payroll.

For many workers in MENA dealing with volatile local currencies, the promise is not just about getting paid on time. RemotePass provides access to USD accounts, global debit cards and premium health insurance. In markets where currency devaluation can wipe out savings overnight, that kind of financial stability is a serious draw. I’ve spoken before with founders who say delayed transfers and FX swings make talent retention a nightmare; solutions like this feel, to them, spot on.

Kamal Reggad, CEO and co-founder of RemotePass, described the round as being “about acceleration”, adding that building a globally competitive platform from the region, in a market incumbents had underestimated, is a point of pride for the team. He noted that the company’s deep regional knowledge has shaped financial tools that workers genuinely need, while also enabling international businesses to tap into MENA talent. The next step, he said, is to take that depth of expertise global.

The timing is notable. RemotePass reached profitability in early 2025, pointing to what investors call strong unit economics. Instead of slowing down, the company chose to reinvest and scale, bringing in EBRD and 500 Global as strategic partners. That decision says a lot. It’s one thing to raise big rounds; it’s another to do it after proving you can stand on your own two feet.

Amine Chabane, Principal at EBRD Venture Capital, highlighted the company’s ability to integrate global payroll with financial products in a single AI-enabled experience. He pointed to the firm’s meaningful scale, achieved with a fraction of the capital raised by some global competitors, as evidence of disciplined execution. Amjad Ahmad, Managing Partner at 500 Global, echoed this view, noting that RemotePass combines workforce management and fintech in one integrated stack, with structural advantages that are hard to replicate.

And there’s more under the hood. In late 2025, RemotePass introduced SpendCards, embedding corporate expense cards directly into the same platform used for payroll and contractor payments. In simple terms, payroll, contractor compensation and company spending now sit in one system, regardless of where a worker is based. The company has also rolled out AI agents to automate onboarding, compliance and support workflows, effectively giving HR and finance teams an extra pair of digital hands. Well… I mean, that’s the theory, but automation done right can indeed save hours every week.

The fresh capital will be used to expand further into Europe and the US, deepen compliance coverage in existing markets, and continue investing in its financial products and AI capabilities. That ambitious push comes as more companies rethink how and where they hire, especially as remote and distributed teams become the norm rather than the exception.

From where I sit, watching the MENA ecosystem mature over the past decade, stories like this are a reminder of how far the region has come. Building global infrastructure from here once felt like a long shot. Now it’s happening in plain sight. And while global competition in payroll and employment platforms is fierce, RemotePass has shown that focusing on overlooked markets can be a clever way to gain an edge.

Whether it can replicate its regional strength on a bigger stage remains to be seen. But with profitability under its belt and fresh backing from heavyweight investors, the company is clearly not playing small anymore. For MENA founders with global ambitions, that’s definatly a development worth watching.

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