Payactiv

Last updated
Payactiv, Inc.
Company type Private
Industry
Founded2012;14 years ago (2012)
Founder
  • Safwan Shah (CEO)
  • Sohail Aslam (CTO)
  • Ijaz Anwar (COO)
Headquarters Milpitas, California, U.S.A.
Services Earned wage access
Number of employees
200 (2020)
Website Official website

Payactiv, Inc. is a financial services company headquartered in Milpitas, California. Payactiv offers Earned Wage Access (EWA) and a financial wellness platform to employees of participating employers and payroll providers. [1]

Contents

Payactiv is the first-ever Earned Wage Access provider, offering the service as of its founding in 2012. [2]

Products and Services

Payactiv offers a suite of financial wellness products and services, including a digital wallet, Visa debit card, and Earned Wage Access.

Earned Wage Access

Payactiv integrates with payroll providers, such as such as ADP, Paychex, Paycor, and UKG, to provide early access to earned wages, known as Earned Wage Access (EWA). Payactiv is the creator and first provider of Earned Wage Access, sometimes referred to as on-demand pay or instant pay.

Using their payroll app or the Payactiv mobile app, users can access a portion of their paycheck early, with instant or near-instant options available to all users. Some employers offer this service as an employee benefit with subsidized fees. For others, users have several free disbursement options, and several low-cost options for faster payments or to use different types of financial accounts to receive the payment. [3]

Digital Wallet

The Payactiv digital wallet is a fee-free checking account alternative including options for direct deposit, a Visa debit card, automated goal-based savings, online bill payment, and other common online banking features. [4]

History

2010s

Payactiv was founded in 2012 by Safwan Shah, Sohail Aslam, and Ijaz Anwar. [5] The company was renamed to Payactiv, Inc. after a short initial period using the name PayKloud, Inc. [6]

In 2013, the Payactiv worked with Jersey Precast Construction to become the first employer to offer Earned Wage Access. In 2014, the company received a $4.3 million funding round, led by Japanese investment firm SoftBank Group. [6] [7]

In November 2015, Payactiv became a Certified B Corporation, a social and environmental certification for for-profit companies. In its certification, the B Corporation listing states that Payactiv bridges the timing gap between earning and spending, eliminates the stress of overdraft and predatory fees, and provides intelligent and pre-emptive cash-flow management. [8]

In 2016, Payactiv raised an additional $9.2 million from undisclosed investors in a Series A investment. [9]

In 2017, Walmart partnered with Payactiv to offer Earned Wage Access to its 1.4 million employees. As of 2019, an estimated 380,000 of Walmart's 1.4 million employees used the app regularly. [10]

In 2018, Payactiv received $20 million in Series B funding, led by investment firm Generation Partners. [11] That year, the company surpassed $1 billion in annual EWA transactions and 650,000 users. [12] Payactiv estimates its users saved approximately $120 million in fees and interest that would have been incurred had they not had access to EWA. [7]

In 2019, the company processed $2.5 billion in early wage payments. [13] That year, the company announced a partnership with Visa that would allow users to receive and spend paycheck advances through a prepaid Visa card. [14]

Also in 2019, Payactiv sponsored California Senate Bill 472, which would create a regulatory framework for Earned Wage Access (EWA) providers in California. [15] The bill limited the transaction fees and the number of transactions that EWA programs could provide. [16]

2020s

In 2020, Payactiv partnered with OnShift to provide early wage access to workers in healthcare and rehabilitation facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. [17] In August, 2020 Payactiv raised $100 million in Series C funding, led by Eldridge Industries. [18]

In December 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) granted Payactiv sandbox approval to provide EWA. The CFPB ruled that Payactiv was not a traditional lender since its EWA program did not create debt, and as such was exempt from the Truth in Lending Act. [19]

As of 2021, the company had partnered with 1,500 employers, including Walmart, Wendy's, and Pizza Hut franchises. [20] [21]

References

  1. ↑ "About Us". Payactiv. Retrieved 2025-12-30.
  2. ↑ Malik, Aatif (2022-07-12). "What is Earned Wage Access?". Payactiv. Retrieved 2025-12-30.
  3. ↑ "Program Pricing". Payactiv. Retrieved 2025-12-30.
  4. ↑ "Get the Payactiv Visa® Card". Payactiv. Retrieved 2025-12-30.
  5. ↑ "A Pakistani-American entrepreneur raised $100 million for his Fintech startup 'Payactiv.'". TechJuice. 2020-08-20. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  6. 1 2 "SEC FORM D". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  7. 1 2 "Our Story". Payactiv. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  8. ↑ "Payactiv - Certified B Corporation - B Lab Global". www.bcorporation.net. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  9. ↑ Shaw, Sam (2016-02-19). "$9.2m payday rolls around for PayActiv". Global Venturing. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  10. ↑ Tergesen, Anne (2019-09-02). "Some Companies Offer a New Benefit: Payroll Advances and Loans". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  11. ↑ Slavens, Aaron T.; Barkus, David A.; O'Garrow, Allison G.; Buren, Bradley Van. "Holland & Knight Represents Generation Partners in $20 Million Investment in PayActiv | News | Holland & Knight". www.hklaw.com. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  12. ↑ PayActiv. "PayActiv Crosses $1 Billion in Processed Funds for Timely Earned Wage Access to the Underserved and Underbanked Workforce". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2026-02-19.
  13. ↑ Crossman, Penny (2020-03-20). "Consumers seek early access to wages to soften coronavirus hit". American Banker. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  14. ↑ Isidore, Chris (2019-03-09). "Visa and Payactiv are now providing quicker pay for those who need it most - CNN Business". CNN. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  15. ↑ "The derailment of California's payroll advance law". American Banker. 2019-09-20. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  16. ↑ Opfer, Chris (August 1, 2019). "'Early Wage' Apps Aim to Disrupt Payday Loans, Two-Week Cycle". Bloomberg Law. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  17. ↑ Vanac, Mary (March 3, 2021). "OnShift innovations enable workers access to wages before payday". Cleveland Business Journal. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  18. ↑ Shen, Lucinda (August 17, 2020). "SoftBank lends WeWork $1.1 billion". Fortune. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  19. ↑ Crossman, Penny (2020-12-30). "Synchrony, Payactiv join CFPB's compliance sandbox". American Banker. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  20. ↑ Paoletta, Kyle; Nwanevu, Osita; Tharoor, Kanishk; Robins, James; Simons, Seth (2021-03-01). "The FinTech Industry Wants to Give Desperate Workers an Advance on Their Next Paycheck. It's a Trap". The New Republic. ISSN   0028-6583 . Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  21. ↑ "U.S. Hourly Workers Push to Get Paid Sooner". Bloomberg.com. 2020-04-01. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
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