Traditionally, managing employee benefits has been a complex and burdensome task for HR teams, who must manage brokers, insurance companies, and manual email exchanges. Kota offers welcome relief, connecting directly with insurers and pension providers and automating and centralising benefits management. This approach simplifies administration for HR teams and empowers employees with immediate access and control over their benefits, enhancing compensation packages and reducing operational challenges.
Today, Irish HR tech startup Kota has raised $14.5 million in Series A funding to revolutionise how companies manage employee benefits. The round was led by French investment firm Eurazeo, with participation from existing investors EQT Ventures and Northzone, Frontline Ventures, 9Yards Capital, and Plug and Play. This brings Kota’s total funding to $22.9 million since its founding.
The new funding will enable Kota to expand its team, add more insurance carrier partners, and accelerate customer acquisition. The company already covers over 30 countries and aims to become Europe’s infrastructure layer for employee benefits. This means that employees can quickly understand, enrol in, and access coverage, retirement plans, or other benefits, and value them. As noted by Luke Mackey, Founder and CEO of Kota, this user-focused approach is at the heart of the company’s mission to solve longstanding industry issues.
Alongside the funding announcement, Kota revealed it has obtained authorisation from the Central Bank of Ireland, making it one of the few regulated technology platforms in the sector. This approval strengthens the company’s position in the financial services ecosystem and demonstrates its commitment to compliance and security.
Rebuilding benefits from the ground up
Founded in 2022 (formerly known as Yonder), Kota is tackling what it describes as a “broken” employee benefits system. The startup was co-founded by Luke Mackey, a second-time founder and former country manager at mobility giant Bolt, Patrick O’Boyle, former CTO at Bamboo, and Deepak Baliga, who previously led engineering teams at unicorn Flipdish. This experienced leadership team has helped Kota rapidly gain traction in the competitive HR tech market.
“Employee benefits, which can make up 25% of total compensation, are systematically undervalued and expensive,” said Luke Mackey, Founder and CEO of Kota. “As a founder and GM, I experienced how managing benefits through email, between brokers and insurance companies, was completely disconnected and alien from everything else in the business.”
Kota’s solution stands out by replacing legacy providers and manual processes with a unified platform that gives employees real-time access and control over their benefits. This innovative approach provides HR teams with a single, reliable system to manage everything from health insurance to retirement plans, setting Kota apart in the HR tech market.
Since launching in 2023, Kota has helped hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises access and manage employee benefits schemes seamlessly. The company has partnered with leading insurance providers, including Vitality in the UK, Irish Life Health in Ireland, and Allianz Global Care internationally.
How Kota transforms benefits management
As one of the few HR tech platforms authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland, Kota is uniquely positioned to integrate directly with financial products while maintaining high trust and compliance standards, crucial for multinational clients.
The platform offers a flexible solution where employees can choose from diverse benefits, including health, retirement, wellness, and learning programs. For multinational corporations, Kota facilitates locally compliant benefits packages across various countries from a single digital hub.
Through direct connections with insurance companies and pension providers, Kota eliminates the need for brokers and manual processes. Its robust API infrastructure enables seamless integration with HRIS and payroll platforms like Workday, BambooHR, and Personio, allowing companies to manage global benefits through their existing systems.
The platform provides a modern, user-friendly experience while maintaining strict security standards (GDPR, SOC 2, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS). Additionally, Kota’s commitment to diversity is demonstrated through its mission to make benefits accessible to globally distributed teams, supporting organisations in building inclusive workforces.
Kota’s commitment to diversity is not just a mission, but a reflection of its core values. The company is dedicated to making benefits accessible to globally distributed teams, regardless of location or background. Kota actively supports organisations building inclusive and diverse workforces by enabling companies to offer tailored benefits packages that comply with local regulations.
“With Kota’s tech-first approach, they’ve built a robust technical and financial infrastructure: deep integrations with insurers across dozens of countries, visibility across the benefits stack, and a seamless API that allows partners—from HRIS to payroll—to embed benefits natively,” said Elise Stern, Director at Eurazeo.
Looking ahead, Kota plans to enhance its AI-driven analytics to help employers predict benefits usage trends, identify gaps, and optimise offerings for different employee demographics. The company also aims to expand its insurance carrier network into Asia-Pacific and Latin America and launch new employee wellness and financial education features.
