Jason

Seafair: payroll and onboarding software for the 2M global seafarers

Seafair pitches multi-currency payroll plus document onboarding for the 2 million merchant mariners who today get paid in US cash or slow SWIFT transfers, riding the tailwinds of cheap cross-border fintech rails and Starlink internet finally reaching ships.

“This is Seafair, payroll and onboarding software for ships. Let's just jump right into the problem here. Paying the 2 million global seafarers is really hard. The average ship is made up of people from more than 3 different nationalities, meaning you deal with disparate local bank accounts, currencies, and regulations. That's why the current solution is literally paying these people in US dollars cash and/or sending slow and often delayed SWIFT transfers.”

Steal thisBuild modern payroll for a niche, neglected global workforce (ships) that big fintechs ignore because of its regulatory nuances.

Seafair's math: $24M ARR at 10% of the seafarer market

Walking through TAM, Seafair's founder calculates that 200,000 seafarers (10% of the 2M market) at $10/month yields $2M/month or $24M ARR, on top of FX spread (25-50 bps) and float on payroll deposits.

“Okay, yeah, so 200,000, we're charging $10 a month, okay? So that's $2 million every single month times 12, that's $24 million in ARR if we capture 10% of the market.”