Volkswagen, fresh off the hook from its diesel emissions scandal, has today announced that its financial arm Volkswagen Financial Services AG has acquired a leading parking payment provider in the form of PayByPhone. The financial details for the deal haven’t been disclosed by either party, and PayByPhone’s 100-member strong team will join VW.
Headquartered in Canada, PayByPhone was founded in 2011 to easily and securely pay for parking without the hassles of waiting in line, and having to carry change or risking costly fines. The company is also not restricted to enabling you to pay for parking just using a smartphone app but also through the web, calls and text messages. It currently has a presence in over 300 cities across six countries and handles $250 million worth of transactions annually. It charges $0.35 convenience fee for booking a parking spot via its platform.
Speaking about the acquisition, Kush Parikh, CEO of PayByPhone, says,
This is a tremendous opportunity for PayByPhone to explore new ways to expand our mobile payments technology into different verticals, markets and use cases. The mobile payment movement has exploded recently, and we look forward to accelerating our consumer parking and payments agenda made possible by this deal. Volkswagen Financial Services AG has been at the forefront of innovation to fit its customers’ mobile lives, and we are honored to be a part of its global vision.
As for Volkswagen, this acquisition only adds to their growing portfolio of mobile-focused payment solutions. The finance company already holds a 92 percent stake in German parking solution provider Sunhill Technologies GmbH, which operates across 90 cities. PayByPhone is the latest and greatest addition to this segment for VW, who’s betting on them to build a foundation for the parking business. They’re now looking ahead for continued global growth and innovation for helping people find a spot to park in crowded metros. But it could soon also extend and spread across the scope of connected vehicles.
Further, Dr. Christian Dahlheim, the management board member responsible for sales and marketing at Volkswagen Financial Services AG also comments on the acquisition:
With the acquisition of PayByPhone, we are now the leading providerfor the processing and mobile payment of parking. In the future, we will be bundling this know-how in a separate business field around the theme of parking.`
The acquisition of the company by Volkswagen wouldn’t have any effects of the daily operations of the parking business. Instead, it will now work on providing improved support, more services, and greater app functionality to existing customers and clients through its integration with VW’s financial arm.
