Tennessee-based financial services firm Celero Commerce has acquired electronic payments technology provider Precision Payments.
With the deal, announced in a news release earlier this month, Celero’s annual card processing volume in North America is expected to surpass $28 billion.
Based in Sarasota, Florida, and founded in 2009, Precision provides electronic payment solutions for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). According to the release, the company bolsters Celero’s presence in the “multilane retail industry” and widens its network of sales professionals serving local communities in North America.
“Throughout our 15-year journey, we have remained focused on helping local businesses thrive,” said Joel King, founder of Precision. “Joining Celero provides our clients with access to an expanded range of innovative products and services that will improve our ability to support their growth.”
PYMNTS explored the challenges facing SMBs earlier this month in a panel discussion with a pair of payments experts, Sarah Acton, chief customer officer at BILL, and Becky Munson, CPA, CITP, partner and CAS practice leader at EisnerAmper.
The question posed to them: How can digital innovations help these small businesses unlock their own unique advantages, while also streamlining financial operations and fortifying their resilience?
Their answer? “Automation, automation, automation.”
SMBs have for years depended on manual, paper-based processes, a habit that Acton and Munson argued is becoming unsustainable.
“Automation is here to stay,” Acton said, adding that “for more and more businesses who are not adopting technology … my worry is they get left behind.”
Munson stressed that automation has gone from being a luxury for larger companies to a necessity for SMBs.
“Our clients are looking for efficiency and productivity, but they’re also battling ‘app fatigue.’ … They’re paying for more than they can manage, and they need solutions that deliver real impact,” she said.
Automating financial workflows, such as payables, receivables and expense management, can provide better control over cash flow — the “lifeblood” of SMB’s operations.
Both Acton and Munson agreed that digital transformation is critical to SMBs’ ability to adapt and thrive in the modern marketplace.
“The pace of change can feel like a runaway train,” Munson said, pointing out that SMBs, focused on key business tasks, struggle to stay on top of new tech.
Acton echoed this sentiment, saying automation provides a lifeline for SMBs to get back control and shift time toward growth initiatives.
Celero’s acquisition of Precision Payments follows last year’s purchase of Finical, a Dallas-based provider of electronic payments technology.
As PYMNTS wrote, that acquisition was designed to enhance Celero’s capabilities and let it process approximately $25 billion in annual card volume.
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