June 27 (Reuters) - KarmaCheck, a background-checking

startup led by LinkedIn co-founder Eric Ly, has raised $45

million in a funding round led by Parameter Ventures.

The San Francisco-based company said on Thursday that it

will use the funds to accelerate the development of its

technology and "expand into new industry verticals."

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

KarmaCheck is among a host of companies looking to use

technology to streamline complex, labor-intensive or repetitive

HR tasks.

The demand for services like criminal background checks and

education verification, integral to the hiring processes of most

companies, has surged after the pandemic made remote working

popular.

CONTEXT

KarmaCheck's clients include Domino's Pizza,

McDonald's and various players in the healthcare and gig

economy industries among its customers.

It claims to deliver results nearly twice as fast as the

traditional methods for such checks.

NextView Ventures, PruVen Capital and Velvet Sea Ventures

also participated in the company's latest funding round.

Founded in 2019 by Eric Ly, LinkedIn's founding CTO,

KarmaCheck has grown to over 100 employees and reported a

seven-fold revenue increase in 2023.

Its competitors include Checkr, First Advantage ( FA ) and

Sterling Check ( STER ). First Advantage ( FA ) agreed to buy Sterling

in a $2.2 billion deal in February.

KEY QUOTES

"Background checks and credentialing has been one of the

most lengthy and frustrating parts of the hiring process," Ly

said.

"It has been one of the major friction points for both

employers and candidates seeking jobs."