$1 million infusion enables nationwide rollout to help small gas retailers.
Gas Pos announced a $1 million investment by Merus Capital, a Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture capital firm. Merus’ investment will enable Gas Pos to execute on a national roll-out plan to bring its affordable gas pump upgrade solution to retailers concerned over the impending costs of the Automated Fuel Dispensers (AFD) EMV (chip-based card) mandate.
FRESH PERSPECTIVE
To combat a reported annual $400 million in fraud, Visa, MasterCard, and American Express are requiring all gas stations to replace magnetic strip-based pumps with EMV-chip reading pumps by 2020. However, the per-station costs are prohibitive: breaking concrete and replacing AFD can require capital expenditures of $25,000 to well over $150,000 for each retail location.
Large chains owned by major gas companies can more easily absorb these costs, but for the small, independent retailers, such a financial hit can severely impair their businesses, according to Gas Pos.
Gas Pos CEO Joshua Smith saw an opportunity both to help others and to build a thriving business. Instead of the incumbents’ rip-and-replace approach, Smith worked closely with industry experts to build an elegant plug-in upgrade module for existing pumps.
Smith said, “We provide independent gas retailers modern business software that meets the requirements of the EMV mandate. There’s no upfront cost to the merchant—we only charge a small monthly fee. Our customers love us because we help them reduce fraud while saving them an average of $100,000 in immediate capital expenditures.”
Under Smith’s leadership, Gas Pos was one of ten startups accepted into the 2018 Venture Center FinTech Accelerator program, sponsored by FIS, a global leader in financial services technology, and then joined a highly-selective technology startup program offered by the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
INNOVATION
“Innovation is everywhere. Josh and his team, the Gas Pos market opportunity, and their disruptive solution checks all of our boxes: Strong team, large market, and a sustainable 10x advantage,“ said Peter Hsing, Co-founding Managing Director of Merus Capital. “We welcome Gas Pos as our first investment in the southeastern U.S. and are excited to help them with their mission to change the basis of competition within the fuel payments industry.”
“As is often said, ‘For of those whom much is given, much is required,’” says Smith. “That’s the philosophy that guides our company and mission. With the support of Merus Capital and others, we have this rare chance to assist the roughly 60,000 independent gas stations that don’t have another viable option. Our passion is for our customers. We’re going to fix something that is wildly wrong in this industry.”
ABOUT GAS POS
Gas Pos, a new technology platform that includes an EMV-compliant point of sale system that provides advanced payment security for convenience stores, gas stations, travel plazas, and truck stops.
Advanced payment security includes EMV, PCI, and point-to-point encryption to keep merchants protected from fraud, hacking, and fines. This integrated solution carries no capital expense investment costs for gas stations, truck stops, and convenience stores.
