London, UK –  13 February, 2024:  HiBob, the company behind Bob, the market leading HR platform in the UK, is pleased to announce the acquisition of innovative cloud-based UK payroll automation platform Pento, subject to closing conditions. Following the release of HiBob’s Payroll Hub in 2021, the acquisition represents the next step in the company’s payroll offering. It will enable HiBob to provide an ‘all-in-one’ experience with payroll as part of the Bob offering, allowing UK businesses to efficiently solve payroll complexity.

Pento leverages real-time payment automation to deliver a fast, simplified, and error-free approach to payroll management. The company’s forward-thinking, self-service approach to payroll stands in stark contrast to the error-prone manual processes prevalent with traditional payroll processes. 

Headquartered in London, Pento has reduced payment processing from weeks to minutes for more than 400 UK customers, many of which are already using the Bob platform. Pento’s technology will enable HiBob to expand its modern approach to human capital management into payroll, enhancing its full-suite capabilities for customers with UK operations looking to break away from cumbersome legacy payroll solutions.

A unified, modern ‘all-in-one’ solution offers benefits beyond HR and Finance. It ensures accurate data, compliance, and self-service capabilities, benefiting all employees. The seamless integration and centralized data access enhance user experience, fostering a culture of happiness, productivity, and retention for overall business success.

“Payroll and HRIS work hand-in-hand with strong synergies. The ultimate goal is an ‘all-in-one’ solution, where all aspects of people management are handled from a single platform. The deeper the integration, the better the overall experience,” said Ronni Zehavi, CEO and Co-Founder at HiBob.

Zehavi concludes: “Traditional payroll processes are time-consuming, error-prone, and difficult to manage. Modern businesses need their HR and payroll teams focused on people, not on manual work. With this acquisition, we are providing our thousands of customers in the UK with more flexibility and ease of use in how they manage their number one asset – their people. Pento’s modern approach, along with their strong founders and proven track record, make them a solid complement to our business. We are thrilled to be welcoming their team to HiBob.”

“We are incredibly proud of what the Pento team has achieved over the years, and this milestone is no different. We have built the best-in-class payroll offering that modern businesses deserve, and can’t wait to see the opportunities it will unlock when we pair this with the best HRIS on the market,” said Jonas Bøgh Larsen, co-founder and CEO at Pento. “By offering a true ‘all-in-one’ solution, companies will be able to automate the entire payroll workflow from start to finish, saving Finance, People, and Payroll teams valuable time, and giving employees a much better pay experience. We are thrilled to join HiBob to give our shared customers an integrated offering that is levels above other solutions in the market, and are excited to continue to make payroll stress-free for even more businesses.”

Deutsche Bank served as strategic advisor for HiBob and Menalto Advisors was the advisor for Pento on the transaction.