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Posted By

Aaron Mireles

PODCAST HOUSTON FINTECH STARTUP TAPS INTO NEW TECH TO MODERNIZE 'DAILY JOURNEYS'

Before Don Frieden started his company, gas stations hadn’t innovated their payment technology
since 1997. He knew that needed to change.

Original Post | Innovationmap

Before Don Frieden started his company, gas stations hadn't innovated their payment technology since 1997. He knew that needed to change.

P97, founded in 2012, exists to use innovative technologies to simplify and energize daily journeys, Frieden explains on the Houston Innovators Podcast.

The fast-growing company — which has nearly 200 employees, most of whom work from Houston — has raised over $100 million in venture funding, according to Crunchbase, most recently closing a $40 million series C round earlier this year. This funding has supported P97 as its expanded its technology, even expanding outside of gas station payments and into other sectors, like consumer packaged goods, mobile app development, and alternative fuel sources.

Part of what P97 is focused on too is adapting new technologies, including biometrics, and applying them to the payments world. Voice-enabled payments is something in particular that Frieden is working on.

"One of the things we’re most excited about is voice enable payments through our partnership with Amazon's Alexa," he explains. "The landscape of payments at gas stations underwent this next revolution, and we're using cutting-edge speech recognition and artificial intelligence to allow drivers to pay for fuel just using their voice.

"It makes the process faster and more efficient, and is completely hands-free," he continues, explaining that biometrics are also safer compared to card transactions. "From this time I say, 'Alexa, buy gas,' six seconds later, the gas would be turned on and any loyalty rewards I have would be applied, all from the comfort of my car."

Frieden shares more about the future of P97, payments, and the energy industry as it intersects with P97 — including the future of alternative fuels — on the podcast. Listen to the interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.

SINGAPORE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–P97 Networks, Inc., has been selected by Mobil Oil New Zealand Limited, an affiliate of ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, to enable mobile payments across its Mobil-branded retail network in New Zealand. ExxonMobil Asia Pacific is the downstream and chemical business hub for the region with over $15 billion of assets under affiliate management. Houston-based P97 Networks is a leader in cloud-based mobile commerce, in-vehicle payments, and frictionless digital marketing solutions. P97’s integrated mobile commerce solution has been enabled at over 170 Mobil Service Stations in New Zealand, its first market for an ExxonMobil affiliate in Asia Pacific, with the platform encompassing secure cloud payments, the Mobil Smiles Driver Rewards program and digital marketing.

“Shoppers around the world have quickly shifted towards the ease, convenience and safety of contactless mobile payments for all of their daily spend categories,” says Paul Clausen, Card Loyalty Payments Manager at Mobil Oil New Zealand. “As a global leader in energy, we looked for similar leadership in mobile commerce so that our customers realise the same benefits when purchasing fuel and in-store products. We chose P97 because they have proven their ability to deliver high levels of services at scale via their mobile commerce and digital marketing platform.”

P97 provides a cloud-based mobile commerce and digital marketing platform that connects shoppers to retail fuel, convenience, quick-serve restaurants, and other merchants by enabling payments and omni-channel offers through any mobile device or connected car. By removing friction from the transaction and enabling merchants to focus on the shopper experience, retailers can increase sales, build greater loyalty, and lower operating costs. Mobile payments also offer greater security for fuel transactions, protecting sensitive cardholder data and avoiding specific forms of fraud.

“We are honoured that ExxonMobil has selected P97 to manage mobile commerce across Mobil New Zealand Stations,” says Brad Jones, Managing Director, Asia Pacific at P97. “The explosive growth of the mobile payments market means consumers have an expectation for frictionless payments at the pump. By going mobile, ExxonMobil further strengthens its position in a highly competitive region and creates experiences that drive greater consumer loyalty.”

About P97

P97 Networks provides secure, cloud-based mobile commerce, in-vehicle payments, and digital marketing solutions for the convenience retail, fuel, and vehicle manufacturing industries under the brand name PetroZone®. P97’s mCommerce solutions enhance the ability to attract and retain customers by securely connecting millions of individual mobile phones and connected cars with merchants using identity, geolocation-based software that creates a unique mobile consumer experience. For more information, follow us on Twitter @p97networks or visit www.p97.com.

Contacts

Aaron Mirales
+1 (713) 588-4216
Aaron.Mireles@p97.com

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