TransFS Raises $510K For Credit Card Processor Comparison Shopping Site

Chicago-based startup TransFS has raised $510,000 in new funding from Hyde Park Angels and Silicon Valley angel investor Dave McClure’s recently launched investment fund 500Startups.

TransFS, which we wrote about here at the startup’s launch last year, is a comparison shopping site for credit card processors. The startup aims to help merchants save money on credit card fees and also conducts reverse auctions to solicit competing bids from credit card processing companies.

On TransFS, businesses submit information about their transactions including the percentage of online, in-store, mail-order and phone transactions; the merchant’s current credit-card processing fees; and monthly volume of sales and average transaction size. This is all variable information used by processing firms when determining fees for a particular merchant.

Once a merchant submit the form, their “auction” will begin. They will be presented with a series of competing bids from credit card processing companies and can review each proposal and select the bid that saves the most money. Bids are presented side by side to help users compare offers more easily and and gives users ratings, reviews, explanation of the terms of the contracts and a detailed financial savings analysis and comparison. It’s a fairly simple and transparent process.

In the future, TransFS aims to replicate for businesses what BillShrink has done for consumers. The startup is expanding to comparison shopping services for payroll procssing, employee health insurance plans, and more. It essentially wants to be a one-stop-shop for any services that businesses may need.