Volkswagen Financial Services AG Acquires PayByPhone

VANCOUVER, BC and BRAUNSCHWEIG, GERMANY--(Marketwired - December 28, 2016) - Volkswagen Financial Services AG and PayByPhone today announced that the financial services division of Volkswagen Group has acquired PayByPhone, the world's leading parking payment provider. The deal positions Volkswagen Financial Services AG as the clear leader in mobile payments and parking sectors, while providing the foundation for future PayByPhone growth globally and continued innovation.

As consumers look for easy-to-use mobile solutions that fit their increasingly digital lives, the PayByPhone acquisition signals a growing market for mobile-payment solutions. PayByPhone's technology -- the fastest way to pay for parking -- will soon be available for millions more drivers across the globe. In 2016, PayByPhone has already processed more than $250 million in payments and is adding approximately 7,000 users per day to their already substantial base of more than 12.5 million registered users.

"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," said Kush Parikh, CEO of PayByPhone. "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."

The PayByPhone acquisition expands the Volkswagen Financial Services AG footprint in the mobile-payment solutions market, and positions the organization as the central service provider within the Volkswagen Group for the parking business. Volkswagen Financial Services AG has already acquired a 92 percent shareholding in Sunhill Technologies GmbH, the German market leader in mobile-parking solutions across 90 German cities.

"With the acquisition of PayByPhone, we are now the leading provider for 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," said Dr. Christian Dahlheim, the management board member responsible for sales and marketing at Volkswagen Financial Services AG.

The acquisition will not affect any of PayByPhone's current operations. In the near future, PayByPhone's existing clients and customers can expect improved support, more services, and greater app functionality as the integration with Volkswagen Financial Services AG continues. The paybyphone app is available on iOS, Android, and all other mobile platforms via its web application and online presence. Drivers in thousands of locations worldwide can download the iOS or Android app here.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

ABOUT PAYBYPHONE

PayByPhone is one of the fastest growing mobile payments companies in the world, processing more than $250 million in payments annually. Through the company's mobile web, smartphone and smartwatch applications, PayByPhone helps millions of consumers easily and securely pay for parking without the hassles of waiting in line, having to carry change or risking costly fines. Registration is quick and easy and the app reminds the user when their parking is about to expire, allowing them to top up from anywhere, at any time.

Many of the largest and most complex parking operations in the world use PayByPhone including San Francisco (30,000 spaces), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority in Boston (25,000 spaces), Seattle (12,000 spaces), London (40,000 spaces) and Paris (155,000 spaces).

ABOUT VOLKSWAGEN FINANCIAL SERVICES

Volkswagen Financial Services is a business division of the Volkswagen AG group of companies and comprise Volkswagen Financial Services AG along with its associated companies and the financial services companies in the USA, Canada, Argentina and Spain that belong directly or indirectly to Volkswagen AG -- with the exception of the financial services of the Scania and Porsche brands and Porsche Holding Salzburg. The key business fields embrace dealer and customer financing, leasing, the bank and insurance business, fleet management and mobility offers. Volkswagen Financial Services have a total of 15,182 employees worldwide -- including 6,513 alone in Germany. Volkswagen Financial Services reports total assets of around EUR 157.9 billion, an operating result of EUR 1.9 billion and a portfolio of around 16.6 million current contracts (as of: 31.12.2015).