VELOCITY GLOBAL

Ben Wright was working in international business development and kept hitting the same wall: companies wanted to hire in foreign markets but the legal, tax, and compliance requirements made it prohibitively expensive and complex for all but the largest multinationals.

He founded Velocity Global in Denver in 2014 to solve this. The company started by helping mid-market companies expand internationally through Employer of Record services.

When the pandemic remote work boom hit, Velocity was already operational in dozens of countries while competitors were still launching.

Employer of Record services in 185+ countries. Companies pay a monthly fee per employee for Velocity to handle all local employment responsibilities — contracts, payroll, benefits, tax withholding, and compliance.

Velocity differentiates through geographic coverage (185+ countries, among the most extensive) and a focus on mid-market and enterprise clients. They also offer immigration and visa support for international relocations.

Employer of Record in 185+ countries. Contractor management.

Immigration support and visa services for international transfers. Compliance monitoring and guidance.

Benefits administration across markets.

Velocity grew through a land-and-expand model with enterprise clients. They’d start with one country for a client and expand as the company hired in more markets.

Partnership channels with consulting firms and immigration providers also drove growth. The pandemic accelerated demand dramatically.

Competition from newer, better-funded competitors like Deel and Remote. Being based in Denver rather than Silicon Valley made early fundraising harder.

The challenge is maintaining quality of service across 185 countries while scaling rapidly.

Eldridge led the $400 million investment round. Earlier backers include FTV Capital and various growth equity firms.

The company has raised approximately $400 million total.