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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.

HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Purchasing fuel, food and merchandise from a mobile device, receiving customized offers, and rolling back prices at the pump will soon be a reality at more than 4,500 CITGO branded retail locations in the United States. The enhanced CITGO mobile app is powered by P97 Networks, a leader in cloud-based mobile commerce. The app will integrate and support Connected Car and the CITGO shopper loyalty program with state-of-the-art mobile commerce technology.

“Because technology is so integrated into our everyday lives, consumers want it at the pump too,” said Kevin Kinney, General Manager of Brand Equity for CITGO, “so we expect this new mobile technology to help drive customers to our retail locations. Our partnership with P97 is just the beginning of other similar ventures.”

“We are proud to be working with a great organization like CITGO,” said Donald Frieden, founder and CEO of P97. “Rolling out mobile capabilities that will facilitate secure, contactless transactions for their shoppers will be a game changer for the CITGO retail network. Likewise, this partnership will strengthen P97’s offer in all the markets we serve.”

“Our decision to partner with P97 was based on its ability to deliver the industry’s leading mobile commerce platform, our joint vision of the future and the interaction P97 had with the CITGO team,” said Kara Gunderson, CITGO Manager of Payment Card Operations. “We are excited about the products and programs we will be rolling out to our CITGO Marketers and Retailers in 2021.

About P97 Networks, Inc.

P97 Networks provides secure cloud-based mobile commerce and digital marketing solutions for the convenience retail and fuels marketing industries under the brand name PetroZone. P97’s commerce solutions enhance the ability of convenience store operators, marketers, and oil companies to attract and retain customers by providing technology that securely connects millions of individual mobile phones and connected cars with identity and geolocation-based software technology to create unique connected-consumer experiences.

About CITGO Petroleum Corporation

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a recognized leader in the refining industry with a well-known brand. CITGO operates three refineries located in Corpus Christi, Texas; Lake Charles, La.; and Lemont, Ill., and wholly and/or jointly owns 42 terminals, six pipelines and three lubricants blending and packaging plants. With approximately 3,300 employees and a combined crude capacity of approximately 769,000 barrels-per-day (bpd), CITGO is ranked as the sixth-largest, and one of the most complex independent refiners in the United States. CITGO transports and markets transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products and supplies a network of more than 4,500 locally owned and operated branded retail outlets, all located east of the Rocky Mountains. CITGO Petroleum Corporation is owned by CITGO Holding, Inc.

Contacts

P97 Media Contact
Aaron Mireles
P: (281) 954-1706
E: Aaron.mireles@p97.com

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