Mobile payments: DKV Mobility and PACE strengthen cooperation

DKV Mobility and the shareholders of PACE Telematics GmbH (“PACE”) have agreed on the acquisition of the outstanding shares in PACE, the leading provider of mobile payment solutions in the European fuel station market. By acquiring all of the shares in PACE, DKV Mobility is creating the foundation to drive the digitalization of fuel station transactions in Europe even more strongly together with the Karlsruhe-based technology company. DKV Mobility had already announced the acquisition of a minority stake in PACE in the fall of 2020. With the acquisition of the remaining shares, PACE and its partners will benefit even more from the experience and partner network of DKV Mobility. PACE will remain an independent company within the DKV Mobility Group. The closing of the transaction is still subject to regulatory approvals. The partners have agreed not to disclose any details of the transaction.

“DKV Mobility is committed to offering its customers and partners a constantly growing range of innovative digital services that they can use conveniently and securely with their mobile devices”, says Sebastian Klauke, CEO of DKV Mobility. “PACE has established itself as the European market leader for mobile payments in the fuel station market and for the virtualization of fuel cards in recent years, making them the ideal strategic partner to drive the digitalization of the fuel station market.”

Philip Blatter, founder and co-managing director of PACE, says: “In the past five years of our successful partnership, we have been able to significantly develop PACE. By further expanding our collaboration, we will retain our DNA – and now also benefit from DKV Mobility’s many years of experience. For us, this is the next logical step towards an even stronger future. Together with the team, we look forward to further advancing PACE in the next phase of growth – with a lot of momentum and new opportunities.“

PACE was founded in 2015 in Karlsruhe, Germany, with the goal of driving digital transformation in the fuel industry. The company operates the Connected Fueling platform, which enables mobile payment directly at the pump and also provides the industry standard for fuel card virtualization. The vendor-neutral platform is open to all oil companies, service station operators, fuel card issuers and point-of-sale system providers. In addition, the platform offers flexible interfaces for car manufacturers and app providers to integrate mobile payment into their systems. DKV Mobility recognized the potential of PACE early on and acquired a stake in the company in 2020. Within just a few years, the company has grown from a start-up to a European market leader. The Connected Fueling Platform is now available at more than 10,800 fuel stations in 15 countries. The PACE Drive app, which enables mobile payment at the pump, now has more than one and a half million users.

DKV Mobility uses PACE’s Connected Fueling platform for the seamless operation of its App&Go digital fuel card. With App&Go, customers can authorize fuel transactions directly at the pump without the need for a physical service card. The App&Go acceptance network currently includes around 8,000 service stations in 13 countries and is being continuously expanded.