\n<\/p>\n
The Department of Justice has reportedly opened a criminal investigation into HR and payroll startup Deel over allegations that it hired a corporate spy to leak information on its biggest rival, Rippling, reports the Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n
In an emailed statement to TechCrunch, Deel says that it is \u201cnot aware of any investigation. We will always cooperate with the relevant authorities and provide any necessary information in response to valid inquiries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Deel\u2019s statement then makes its own allegations against Rippling. It points to its own lawsuit that alleges its rival has been on a \u201csmear campaign,\u201d claiming it\u2019s beating the competitor in the market, and adding, \u201cthe truth will win in court.\u201d Rippling declined comment.<\/p>\n
This is arguably the biggest drama between two HR startups ever.<\/p>\n
To recap, Rippling sued Deel in May, and revised the suit in June, alleging that its rival planted a corporate spy. The Rippling employee was caught in a sting operation and confessed to being a paid spy for Deel in an Irish court via a sworn written statement that reads like a Hollywood movie.\u00a0The employee testified that he took Rippling\u2019s sales leads, product roadmaps, customer account info, names of superstar employees, whatever was asked for, and handed it over to Deel executives.<\/p>\n
Rippling\u2019s suit, which is ongoing, charged its rival with violations of the federal racketeering law (known as the RICO statute and typically used against organized crime) among other laws it cited. But despite using phrases like \u201ccriminal syndicate,\u201d this was a civil suit, not a criminal prosecution.<\/p>\n
Deel countersuited Rippling, also alleging spying by impersonating a customer, among other claims.<\/p>\n
Techcrunch event<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco<\/span> The man who confessed to spying agreed to testify in Rippling\u2019s case, and Rippling agreed to pay him for legal and travel expenses, according to the man\u2019s cooperation agreement released as a court document and seen by TechCrunch. Deel is now calling the man Rippling\u2019s \u201cpaid witness.\u201d<\/p>\n But the man also went back to court alleging that his family was living in terror because he believed men from Deel were following him. Deel\u2019s lawyer initially denied this but later discovered that Deel did hire surveillance.<\/p>\n Rippling scored the most recent win, at the end of November, when it obtained bank records. The records indicated that Deel transferred funds into an account held by the wife of Deel\u2019s COO, and 56 seconds later that account transferred the same amount to an account held by the confessed spy.<\/p>\n In the meantime, another court document shows that Deel\u2019s founder and CEO Alexandre Bouaziz, who has been called \u201cthe mastermind\u201d of the spying plot in Rippling\u2019s lawsuit, has hired high-powered lawyer William Frentzen to represent him. Frentzen is a partner with Morrison Foerster\u2019s white collar defense group and was formerly the chief of the corporate and securities fraud unit of the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Northern District of California.<\/p>\n Rippling\u2019s lawyer is none other than Alex Spiro of white-shoe law firm Quinn Emanuel. Spiro is a former prosecutor for the Manhattan District Attorney\u2019s Office who is known for his big personality and long list of celeb clients, ranging from Elon Musk to Jay Z.<\/p>\n So it\u2019s all sounding like a plot from a John Grisham novel, with a sprinkle of the show \u201cSuits\u201d on top.<\/p>\n None of this has stopped investors from backing Deel or Rippling. In October, Deel announced it hit a $17.3 billion valuation after raising $300 million led by Ribbit Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. Rippling hit a $16.8 billion valuation in May after raising $450 million from investors like Elad Gil, Goldman Sachs Alternatives, and Y Combinator.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t|<\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe spy lived in fear<\/h2>\n
Payment to the spy <\/h2>\n