This US-based fleet fuel payments startup serves over 120 fleets across 800 stations, processing more than $20 million in annualized volume and growing by 50 percent month over month. Meet Piston!
What is the news?
- Founded by former fleet operators Vikram Sekhon and Shivam Shah, Piston has raised $6.1 million in seed funding led by Spark Capital, with participation from Pear VC and BOND.
- This round brings the total raised by the Cupertino and Lehi-based company to $7.5 million, following a $1.4 million pre-seed round through the PearX accelerator.
Why is it interesting?
- Piston’s strategic use of India as their engineering hub showcases the global-India talent arbitrage at its finest. Their Kolkata office, launched in April 2023 with five people, now supports over 25 team members including the entire engineering team.
- Co-founder Shivam Shah’s conviction that “we can build a world-class payments product from here” demonstrates how global entrepreneurs are recognizing India not just as a cost center, but as a core innovation hub.
- With their cardless payments platform eliminating fraud and reducing fuel spend by double digits for fleet operators, they’re solving real problems in the US commercial fuel market.
Read more: Piston Raises $6.1 Million to Modernize Fleet Fuel Payments and Expand Network