Punchey, the company that helps local businesses get discovered and get paid, today unveiled its end-to-end payments platform for small and mid-sized businesses. The Punchey payments and promotions platform enables businesses and consumers to securely conduct transactions wherever they may be - on a mobile device, on the Web or at the store counter. The company also announced that it has received $1.7 million from Stevens Ventures.

"We believe it's the first completely end-to-end payments solution for local businesses, enabling them to 'make sense' of their marketing and promotional investments."

With Punchey, local merchants can now accept payments through internet-enabled, marketing proficient, socially aware tools and software that help check out and bill customers, while capturing critical data to drive future promotional efforts.

"We're bringing small businesses on the grid, connecting the local shopping experience to their upstream marketing initiatives," said Nathaniel Stevens, founder of Punchey. "We believe it's the first completely end-to-end payments solution for local businesses, enabling them to 'make sense' of their marketing and promotional investments."

The company already works with more than a dozen clients spanning multiple geographies and industries. Sophia Brodsky, owner of the Body Klinic Day Spa in Philadelphia says, "Punchey is so simple to use. My customers love signing right on the smartphone screen, can apply tips directly and receive an email receipt right as they checkout."

Punchey offers physical card readers that allow merchants to swipe credit cards and handle customer checkout. The Punchey Mobile Card Reader, an all in one terminal designed for businesses of all kinds, authorizes sales, captures signatures and sends digital receipts to customers. It is compatible on any iOS device and connects through Wi-Fi or a 3G/4G connection. The company also offers the Punchey Countertop Card Reader, which is compatible with the PCs and Macs that millions of local retailers already have at their place of business. These "smart terminals" are intended to completely replace the analog dial terminal typically found at brick and mortar stores.

"Punchey has already delivered enormous value to our company," said Paige Johnston, director of finance at Ambassador Pools in Norwood, Mass. "The platform is incredibly easy to use. As soon as I log in, I can see our average weekly sales, deals per day and trends at a glance. One of the unique benefits that Punchey offers is the ability to easily look up past payments hassle free, and email and text receipts." Ambassador is one of thousands of businesses that take phone orders for home services and contract work. Ambassador keys in transactions through Punchey's Web-based service, an additional offering for businesses that don't have access to a physical card reader.

Punchey provides an array of value added communications and marketing capabilities on top of its payment platform. This holistic retention program enables merchants to automatically create accounts for each customer and populate them with personalized rewards, special offers and communications, providing additional post-sale engagement opportunities. The company will roll out additional marketing features later this year

About Punchey

Punchey is the best way for local merchants to get discovered and accept payments. The company provides an end-to-end payment processing and marketing solution for small and medium-sized merchants. Get paid wherever, whenever and bring more customers in with Punchey Mobile and Punchey Countertop.

Punchey was founded by serial entrepreneur and investor Nathaniel Stevens. Stevens previously founded an Inc. 500 company, Yodle.com, a leader in local online advertising and lead generation services. He also runs Stevens Ventures, a technology and media investment fund.