Up until now, Fortes’ solutions handled business management tools as well as the processing and closing of employee payments. The information was then sent to the government via eSocial.

Payroll automation startup Somapay, based in Ceará, and Fortes Tecnologia, a software accounting firm in Fortaleza (CE), have announced a partnership.

The intention is to offer banking services to staff members and incorporate payroll administration by HR.

Up until now, Fortes’ solutions have taken care of closing and processing employee payments, sent data to the government via eSocial, and provided tools for business management.

But this puzzle also needed to take payment execution efficiency into account, which is how FortesPay was born.

In actuality, the new platform enables accounting specialists to close payments and produce a file containing data for distribution to clients, or businesses.

In parallel, the HR division uses an API-based system to access the financial institution’s online banking (SomaPay) and confirm employee salary.

The integration not only makes it easier to open digital accounts with SomaPay for free, but it also provides a number of other services like insurance, transfers, payroll loans, and access to a marketplace that offers deals at pharmacies and popular apps like Uber, iFood, Spotify, and Netflix.

The security of encrypted data on the platform, which prohibits the transmission of private information like salaries through channels with low security levels, is a crucial benefit of this partnership.

An authentication token and a user’s private access key are the foundation of this procedure.

As of right now, SomaPay has managed more than BRL$1.5 billion over the past 12 months and has documented the opening of over 150,000 accounts with more than 1,500 businesses. The business believes there is a lot of room for growth in the market.

FortesPay wants to investigate HR-related avenues outside of finance and accounting, like flexible benefits.

The fintech intends to compete with other startups in the payroll market, including Caju, Flash, and Swile, among others, by enabling employees with accounts in the digital bank to use their benefit balances for specific expenses, like food, fuel, or pharmacy, by the beginning of 2024.

It is important to note that Employer, a Curitiba-based company, introduced RHPIX in 2020, software that makes it easier to pay salaries, compensation, bonuses, vacation time, and other benefits directly from an employee’s bank account. This means that FortesPay is not the only player in the payroll market.