Exclusive: Stripe & Sequoia Backed Clear Lays Off Around 190 Employees

Bengaluru-based fintech SaaS platform Clear has joined the list of Indian startups resorting to downsizing amid a decline in funding this year. The Kora Capital-backed startup laid off  190 to 200 employees on Thursday (September 15, 2022), sources told Inc42.

The startup laid off around 20% of its workforce across departments, including tech, product, sales, support team among others, the sources said. However, several sources hinted that the layoff count could be much higher.

The layoffs are a part of the restructuring exercise undertaken by Clear (earlier known as Cleartax) to increase its cash runaway, they added.

Detailed questionnaire sent to Clear did not elicit any response.

The layoffs come only  two months after Clear acquired  CimplyFive, a cloud-hosted application that automates company law and SEBI Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements (LODR) compliance, in an all-cash deal. The acquisition will give Clear’s enterprise customers access to the compliance risk management software that will eliminate procedural non-compliance under The Companies Act, 2013.

In March this year, Clear also acquired Gurugram-based supply chain financing startup Xpedize for an undisclosed amount to foray into credit for SMEs and B2B payments. 

The startup raised $75 Mn in Series C round in October last year. The funding round was led by Kora Capital, Alua Capital, Think Investments and other existing investors. 

Founded in 2011 by Archit Gupta, Raja Ram Gupta, Srivatsan Chari, and Ankit Solanki, Clear offers a plethora of services to clients, including tax preparation, e-filing, accounting and investment planning solutions for individuals and businesses. It also offers individuals wealth management solutions.

The startup is backed by marquee names like Elevation Capital, Sequoia Capital, Y Combinator, Composite Capital, Founders Fund, and San Francisco-based fintech giant Stripe. It also counts angel investors such as Robinhood’s chief product officer Aparna Chennapragada, Coinbase’s CPO Surojit Chatterjee, and Balaji Srinivasan (Ex-Coinbase, Ex-Andreessen Horowitz) among its backers.

Clear reported a 24% widening of its loss after tax to INR 118 Cr in financial year 2020-21 (FY21) from INR 95 Cr in FY20. Its total income jumped to INR 62 Cr during the year from INR 35.3 Cr in FY20. Total expenses also shot up to INR 180 Cr from INR 130 Cr in the previous year.

As per Inc42’s layoff tracker, Indian startups, including Clear, have laid off around 12,200 employees in 2022 so far.