UK RegTech Startup CoComply Raises £1.9M to Identify Hidden Contractors

UK-based regulatory technology startup CoComply has raised £1.9 million to help businesses identify contractors working through supplier agreements and improve compliance with workforce regulations. The funding round was led by Mercia Equity Finance, managed by Mercia Ventures through the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, alongside early-stage investor Haatch.

The company aims to address a common challenge for large organisations: understanding exactly who is performing work across their external supplier networks. As businesses increasingly rely on outsourced services, subcontractors and independent workers, maintaining accurate workforce records and applying the correct compliance checks can become difficult.

CoComply plans to use the new funding to develop its platform and expand sales, marketing and delivery operations in the UK and international markets.

CoComply raises £1.9 million from Mercia and Haatch

The £1.9 million round brings together venture investors and experienced business leaders who see an opportunity in workforce compliance.

Mercia Equity Finance led the investment through the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, while Haatch also participated. Additional investors include Richard Law, former chief executive of identity data company GBG; Seb Timpson, co-founder of private markets data provider With Intelligence; and Stephen Cann of Bollin Group, who is set to become CoComply's chair.

The funding will support product development and commercial expansion as the company looks to help organisations manage increasingly complex contractor relationships.

CoComply was founded by Michael Cleavely, who previously co-founded recruitment business Triple Seven with David Hood. Experis, the professional resourcing arm of ManpowerGroup, took a majority stake in Triple Seven in a deal announced in January 2014.

Cleavely said businesses across industries increasingly depend on external workers but often struggle to determine how many people are working for them, what those individuals do and how they should be engaged.

CoComply aims to provide a governance layer that helps companies make those decisions and classify work correctly from the outset.

Why hidden contractors are becoming a compliance challenge

Many companies manage external workers through supplier contracts, statements of work and service agreements. However, these documents do not always provide a consolidated view of the individual people delivering services across an organisation.

This creates a visibility problem for procurement, human resources, finance and legal teams. When workforce information is fragmented across departments and systems, businesses may struggle to identify workers who require specific checks or determine whether their employment arrangements have been classified correctly.

CoComply's platform is designed to identify individuals embedded within supplier relationships, assess their engagement arrangements and help determine which compliance requirements apply.

These include the UK's IR35 off-payroll working rules, Right to Work requirements and modern slavery legislation. The company combines automation with specialist expertise to support this process.

The underlying challenge is that regulatory responsibilities can extend beyond an organisation's directly employed workforce. Businesses may need to understand who is performing work on their behalf even when those individuals are supplied through third-party providers.

IR35 and Right to Work rules create demand for better visibility

One of the key areas addressed by CoComply is IR35, the UK's off-payroll working framework. These rules determine whether certain individuals working through their own companies should be treated as employees for tax purposes.

Since April 2021, medium and large private-sector organisations have generally been responsible for determining the employment status of contractors covered by the reformed rules.

HM Revenue and Customs estimated in February 2025 that approximately 120,000 workers were likely affected by the 2021 reforms. A June 2026 Treasury response cited an HMRC analysis estimating additional tax, National Insurance and Apprenticeship Levy payments of approximately £4.2 billion by the end of March 2023.

Right to Work requirements are another important factor. According to the article, changes that took effect on October 1, 2026, extended the scheme to certain individual subcontractors and people engaged through online matching services.

These developments increase the importance of understanding who is working across supplier networks and which checks apply to different engagement arrangements.

However, regulatory requirements alone do not solve the underlying data problem. Businesses first need visibility into the workers operating within their wider supply chains. CoComply is positioning its platform around that gap.

How CoComply's platform works

CoComply focuses on identifying individuals hidden within supplier agreements and helping organisations determine how those individuals should be engaged and classified.

The platform is designed to bring together information that might otherwise remain distributed across contracts, procurement systems and internal business functions.

Its compliance workflow covers several areas:

• Identifying individual workers embedded in supplier contracts and statements of work.

• Assessing how those workers are engaged and classified.

• Helping determine which IR35, Right to Work and modern slavery checks may apply.

• Combining automated processes with specialist compliance expertise.

• Providing a clearer view of external workforce relationships for governance and decision-making.

The company's broader objective is to help businesses establish appropriate engagement models before work begins, rather than discovering potential compliance gaps after contracts are already in place.

CoComply's investor materials identify fragmented information across systems and contracts as a key reason traditional tools struggle to provide a complete picture of external workforces.

Connecting that information remains a significant challenge. Procurement, HR and finance systems often operate independently, making integration and data consistency important as the company develops its offering.

Why investors are backing CoComply

Mercia Ventures sees an opportunity to address a problem that has become more difficult as businesses increase their use of outsourcing.

Mauricei Disasi, investment manager at Mercia Ventures, said organisations often lack a clear understanding of who is delivering work through external arrangements. He highlighted CoComply's ability to identify and classify hidden workers as a differentiating factor.

Haatch also sees potential in the company's approach. Marwa Ebrahim, an associate at Haatch, pointed to the platform's visibility and control over external workforces, alongside the team's understanding of the problem and the traction it has built.

The investment comes amid wider interest in regulatory technology, or RegTech, which uses software to help organisations manage regulatory obligations, governance and risk.

Companies in adjacent markets are developing tools for security compliance, governance, risk management and contractor administration. However, CoComply's specific focus is identifying individual workers hidden within supplier contracts, rather than simply managing compliance documentation or payroll for known contractors.

This distinction could help the company establish a position in a specialised segment of workforce compliance.

CoComply reports strong growth in 2025

CoComply reports that its revenue increased by 240% in 2025 and that its customer numbers grew by 300% year on year. The company forecasts revenue growth of more than 120% in 2026.

Its customers reportedly range from mid-market businesses to FTSE 100 companies. The company lists Aston Martin, Take-Two, RS Group, Thredd, Quint Group, Dementia UK and the Royal Yachting Association among its customers.

These figures indicate early commercial traction, although the company has not disclosed absolute revenue figures in the supplied report.

The wider RegTech market also offers a potentially expanding opportunity. Grand View Research estimates that the global RegTech market was worth $24.3 billion in 2025 and projects growth to approximately $112.1 billion by 2033.

That broader market includes multiple types of compliance software, so it should not be interpreted as the addressable market for CoComply alone.

Can CoComply build a defensible position?

With £1.9 million in new funding, CoComply plans to strengthen its product and expand its commercial operations in the UK and internationally.

Its next challenge will be converting reported growth into repeatable expansion while integrating with the systems businesses already use to manage procurement, HR, finance and suppliers.

The company must also demonstrate why organisations should adopt a dedicated external workforce governance platform rather than rely on contractor management, payroll or procurement software that may add similar capabilities.

CoComply's opportunity lies in making previously fragmented workforce information visible and actionable. If it can help businesses identify external workers, apply the right classifications and manage compliance across complex supplier relationships, it could establish a specialised position in the evolving RegTech market.

The latest funding gives the company additional resources to pursue that goal. Whether its approach becomes a standalone category or a feature within larger enterprise platforms will depend on its ability to demonstrate sustained customer demand and measurable business value.