MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- Cash payment network PayNearMe has announced a mobile option for consumers who prefer to pay cash for e-commerce purchases, loan re-payments, e-wallet loads and a variety of other everyday transactions. Using only their mobile phones and the new, free PayNearMe Card, consumers can complete transactions with a growing list of payees, including Amazon and Facebook. PayNearMe Cards are available at more than 6,000 U.S. 7-Eleven stores.
In addition to the launch of PayNearMe Cards, the company also announced that it has secured $16 million in financing ([image-nocss] see separate release for details) to continue delivering its service offerings, add payment locations and expand its network of payees.
According to PayNearMe, more than 50% of U.S. adults prefer cash for payment and a quarter of U.S. households lack credit or debit cards. This means American consumers need a secure and convenient way to complete remote transactions with cash. Because PayNearMe recognized that mobile phones represent a simple and easy way for these consumers to complete cash transactions, the company developed a mobile option based initially on the PayNearMe card.
To complete a payment with a PayNearMe Card and a mobile phone, consumers provide their mobile number to a business they wish to pay with cash; get a free PayNearMe card from their local 7-Eleven store and reply to a text message from PayNearMe with the Card's unique number; and hand that PayNearMe Card and cash to a store associate who completes the transaction in real-time. After the transaction has been processed, the PayNearMe Card can be re-used or discarded.
As with all PayNearMe transactions, the payee is notified immediately that payment has been received with no risk of fraud, chargebacks or frozen funds.
Unlike gift or prepaid cards, which store value and are typically in fixed amounts, PayNearMe Cards enable mobile cash payments in any amount from 1 cent to $1,000. There is no stored value, no hidden fees, no unused balances and no need or ability to pay more than the consumer intended to spend.
"By creating mobile cash payments with the free PayNearMe Card, we're making it even easier for consumers to make payments with cash," said Danny Shader, CEO of Mountain View, Calif.-based PayNearMe. "Now, businesses that accept PayNearMe can serve the large and growing population of consumers who prefer cash and want to use their mobile phones."
PayNearMe is accepted across a range of industries, merchants and payment gateways, including: Amazon, Facebook, Progreso Financiero, PaymentVision, MOL AccessPortal, m-Via, Lexicon Marketing LLC, Adknowledge's Super Rewards, Money to Go and SteelSeries.
PayNearMe enables consumers to pay conveniently with cash for a wide variety of goods and services from leading companies in e-commerce, direct response and catalog marketing, consumer finance and beyond at a local store such as 7-Eleven.
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