Startup profile · funding coverage
Zenefits funding, valuation and investors
SMB HR, benefits, and payroll SaaS — acquired by TriNet in 2022, now TriNet HR Plus.
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Funding, valuation & investors
Answer-first snapshotLatest funding
Series C
$500M · May 2015
Latest known valuation
$4.5B
Series C · May 2015
Total disclosed equity funding
$500M
Excludes debt, grants, acquisitions, secondaries, and IPO proceeds.
Current status
acquired
acquired · San Francisco, CA
Investors in latest funding
Lead: Fidelity
Other: Andreessen Horowitz , Khosla Ventures , Founders Fund , CRV , Insight Partners , Greylock Partners
Overview
Zenefits built an all-in-one HR platform for small businesses covering benefits enrollment, payroll, time tracking, and compliance. Founded in 2013 in San Francisco by Parker Conrad and Laks Srini, it became one of the fastest-growing HR SaaS companies of its era, raising a $500M Series C in May 2015 at a $4.5B valuation led by Fidelity and TPG with a16z, Khosla, Founders Fund, CRV, Insight, and Greylock participating. Regulatory and operational challenges followed; Francisco Partners took control in 2021. TriNet completed the acquisition in February 2022, rebranding the product through TriNet Zenefits to TriNet HR Plus.
Why Zenefits is interesting
Zenefits proved SMB HR could explode via broker-led distribution — then became a cautionary tale on compliance velocity; the asset now lives inside TriNet's ASO stack.
Product & use cases
Cloud HRIS connecting payroll, benefits administration, PTO, and compliance workflows for SMBs, originally monetized via insurance commissions then SaaS subscriptions.
- Onboarding employees with benefits elections
- Running payroll and ACA compliance for SMBs
- Time tracking integrated with HR records
Key facts
- Founded 2013; Parker Conrad CEO (later founded Rippling)
- Series C (May 2015): $500M at $4.5B (TechCrunch)
- Acquired by TriNet Feb 2022; now TriNet HR Plus
- a16z led earlier Series A/B rounds
Funding history (newest first)
Series C
2015-05 $500M Valuation: $4.5B- Fidelity (lead)
- Andreessen Horowitz (participant)
- Khosla Ventures (participant)
- Founders Fund (participant)
- CRV (participant)
- Insight Partners (participant)
- Greylock (participant)
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2015/05/06/zenefits-raises-500m-at-a-4-5b-valuation/
Investors in our directory
Funds linked from Zenefits's profile — open a fund page for stage focus and related deal articles.
Competitive landscape
Edge: Early integrated HR+benefits UX for tiny teams; massive SMB funnel before regulatory reset slowed growth.
Zenefits helped define modern SMB HR software but ceded momentum to Gusto and Rippling after its 2016 regulatory crisis. As TriNet HR Plus it competes as part of a broader ASO/PEO bundle rather than standalone freemium HR.
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Gusto direct
SMB payroll/HR rival with cleaner post-2016 reputation.
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Rippling direct
Parker Conrad's later unified HR/IT platform.
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TriNet PEO adjacent
Parent after acquisition; co-employment vs software-only track.
Notable stories
- Parker Conrad departed after 2016 licensing compliance issues; he later founded Rippling, often compared to Zenefits' original thesis.
- TriNet bought Zenefits from Francisco Partners to pair software with its PEO/ASO services.
Industries
FAQs about Zenefits
Practical answers founders, operators, and investors typically search for.
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