Payfare Inc. (“Payfare” or the “Company”) (TSX: PAY), a leading fintech powering instant payout and digital banking solutions for the gig workforce, today announced its intention to expand into the high growth Earned Wage Access (EWA) market.
As a pioneer of providing instant pay after every task and rewards-rich loyalty programs for gig economy workers, Payfare intends to use its technology forward card issuance and digital wallet platform to provide employees access to the same benefits in both the United States and Canada.
The opportunity ahead is significant, with a total addressable market (TAM) in the United States of over 131 million people earning less than $75K annually1, over 78 million hourly wage workers2, and 12 million people drawing on payday loans once a year3. In Canada, over 22 million people earn under $75K annually4. Personal budget shortfalls are an important issue as 44% of workers have less than $500 saved for unexpected expenses on essential items such as gas, groceries, rent, and utility bills5. Payfare believes simply providing access to wages that have already been earned can assist workers in this scenario while reducing reliance on predatory consumer credit products.
Employers that offer EWA programs to their workers also realize benefits in increased worker retention and satisfaction. Approximately 76% of workers believe it is important that their employer provides access to EWA6, and 79% would consider switching to an employer with an EWA program5. Offering such a benefit can improve the financial health of employees, while improving engagement and productivity.
With over 1 million active users, Payfare believes its experience and track record in partnering with the largest global gig platforms to achieve the goal of financially empowering their workforces, makes it well positioned to assist full time employers as well.
“We don’t believe payday loans should exist in the modern world with real time integration to payroll records as well as the capability to repay at source,” said Marco Margiotta, CEO and Founding Partner of Payfare. “We have built an award-winning digital banking product7 that has helped our gig platform partners reduce their worker acquisition costs and boost productivity. Providing these same benefits to employees and employers is a massive opportunity set ahead of Payfare with a TAM of over 131 million people in the US. We look forward to sharing progress on our expansion into EWA over the course of 2023.”