Series A Investment Fuels Hot Company Spurring “Work-from-Anywhere” Future
LONDON and SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 2, 2021 /CNW/ — Oyster, the HR platform for globally distributed companies, today announced it has completed a $20 million Series A investment led by Emergence Capital, less than a year after raising a $4.2Mseed round. Spurred by the rapid acceleration of distributed working during the pandemic, Oyster has grown quickly by enabling companies to manage growing and geographically distributed workforces in over 100 countries.
Renowned SaaS investor Jason Green, who has led funding for Zoom, Salesforce, Bill.com, and others, is the lead investor. Additional investors include the Slack Fund and Connect Ventures. The investment will accelerate Oyster’s rapid growth and support its mission of enabling people to work from anywhere.
There are now massive opportunities for remote-centric companies to attract and retain great global talent, and for the SaaS companies that enable them. Oyster’s category-defining SaaS HR platform supports the changing needs of HR in the new work-from-anywhere world—by removing the need to deal with local payroll and employment complexity, by speeding up traditional international hiring, onboarding and by providing robust benefits for employees and contractors alike- all from one SaaS platform.
By closing the geographic gap between great job opportunities and talented individuals, Oyster is addressing many of the wrongs of modern society, including unequal distribution of wealth and talent, lack of opportunity for career progression, burnout, and poor work-life balance. Oyster was recently granted B-Corporation certification with a pending status. The company has published a social impact thesis that can be found here.
“We invest in people who change the way the world works,” said Emergence Founder Jason Green. “Remote work is here now and here to stay. Oyster makes hiring and onboarding the best remote talent in the world easy, fast, and efficient. Oyster has the best team and product to dominate this emerging category in the future of work and we are thrilled to be partnering with them.”
Said Tony Jamous, Oyster CEO, “The move to work from anywhere is good news to the world, despite a gloomy 2020. We have aligned our mission with our growth, and it is paying off. We were fortunate to be able to raise our Seed and Series A during the pandemic, remotely.”
Said Jason Spinell, Director of the Slack Fund, “At the Slack Fund, we’re focused on investing in the next wave of software companies building the future of work. Oyster is addressing the challenges that come with employing a globally distributed team, enabling companies to expand their potential talent pool and hire based on what matters most to them. The ability to hire from anywhere is necessary to embrace a remote-first future.”
Added Conner Forrest, Senior Research Analyst at 451 Research, part of S&P Global Marketing Intelligence, “Companies are beginning to think more strategically about global talent, but they first need fundamental enablement to hire globally. As long-term and permanent remote work policies grow, and companies consider eliminating physical office space due to COVID-19, the need for tools that support a mass-scale shift to remote work is great.” [1]
About Oyster
Oyster is the HR platform for globally distributed companies. It lets growing companies give valued international team members the experience they deserve, without the usual headaches or the expense. Oyster enables hiring anywhere in the world, with reliable, compliant payroll, and great local benefits and perks. Founded in 2019 by Tony Jamous and Jack Mardack, Oyster is itself a fully remote company with a diverse, globally-distributed team. Join us: http://oysterhr.com/careers
About Emergence Capital
Emergence is the leading venture capital firm focused on early-stage enterprise software companies. Its mission is to be the most important partner to the companies that are changing the way the world works. For more information, visit https://www.emcap.com.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
