After completing a noted technology startup program, a Portland-grown HR software startup has snagged a $3.25 million seed round.
Pasito, which had completed the most recent Y Combinator program, makes software that helps employees understand and use tax-efficient benefits, including dependent care flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts and 401(k)s.
The idea is to give employees a snapshot of what happens if they use these accounts. Employees can take their own financial data and, based on that information, see what plan or contribution levels make the most sense for their needs.
The round included investment from Y Combinator, Google, Core Innovation Capital and FiDi Ventures. Several strategic angel investors with expertise in health care tech, insurance and software-as-a-service also contributed to the round.
While the company has a distributed team, co-founder and chief growth officer Julie Scotland is based in Portland. The two other co-founders are CEO Pauline Roteta, based in New York, and CTO Ignacio Ampuero, based in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Pasito's leaders spent the summer in the accelerator Y Combinator, where they scaled the initial software to scale as quickly as possible. The company began getting inbound investment interest shortly after its September Demo Day.
“We were fortunate (as) a female- and minority-owned company to have the ability to choose the people we wanted to bring into the cap table,” Scotland said. “We were really focused on looking at targeted investors who have experience in insurance and HR and finance spaces.”
Pasito employs nine workers and continues to grow.
Last year, the company completed a pilot program with 1,700 employees. It found the workers saved, on average, $1,800 in dependent care flexible spending accounts.
Pasito has paying customers, though Scotland declined to share details. She did note that those customers range from 100 US based employees up to enterprise levels.
