BP gets in on Ryd

The Munich-based fintech wants to expand its payment system to other European markets with the help of the British petroleum giant.

The VC arm of the British petroleum company BP is investing ten million euros in the fintech Ryd. Daniela Proske, Managing Partner at BP Ventures, will also join Ryd's board of directors. "Partnering with BP will help meet this demand and accelerate the growth of our network and ecosystem across Europe," said Sandra Dax, CEO of Ryd, at the announcement of the investment.

Ryd offers an integrated payment platform for drivers. It will allow them to pay at petrol stations, e-car charging points and car washes, among other places. The partnership with BP will help Ryd become even more attractive to end customers and new in-car and in-app payment partners, Dax says.

Since its launch in Munich in 2014, Ryd has been able to attract 3,000 service points as partners. So far, the service is available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Benelux countries, with Portugal and Spain to be added soon. With the help of the BP investment, the fintech wants to open up the whole of Europe in the medium term.

BP itself has a similar offering in its portfolio; the BPme app is currently available in the UK and the Netherlands. A merger of the two offerings could follow, as the companies indicated in a joint announcement.