Paytrust has launched a Web-based service that
it says provides consumers with “complete one-stop bill delivery, payment and management.”
Paytrust said it can deliver all of a consumer’s bills to a single, secure Web site and directs payments from users’ pre-existing checking accounts. Using its own patent-pending technology, as well as the ability to work with any biller and any bank, Paytrust said it can deliver on the promise of consumer-focused electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP).
The site is offering initial customers a free three-month trial period. Following the trial, subscribers pay a monthly fee of $7.95. Consumers tell Paytrust the bills they want to receive online and provide the bank account from which they want payments made. Paytrust handles all the
work and contacts billers to have them send billing information (electronic or paper bills) to the Paytrust processing center, the company said.
Customers have access via the Web to view and pay their bills.
“We believe the Paytrust service is perhaps the most useful and compelling
e-convenience since the introduction of e-mail,” said Edward McLaughlin,
co-founder and CEO of Secure Commerce Services, the company behind the
Paytrust service. “By streamlining the bill payment process for consumers, we
are effectively saving them valuable time they can spend on other
activities.”
The Paytrust Bill Center notifies subscribers via e-mail when a bill has arrived. Subscribers can choose to pay the bill then or review it later, and receive e-mail reminders whenever bills are soon due. To further streamline the process, specific bills can be designated for automatic payment. And
Paytrust said the data can be integrated with leading personal financial management software such as Quicken and MS Money.
Paytrust said all transactions are fully encrypted and all accounts password-protected. Subscriber information is safeguarded from outside parties and will not be shared or sold, the company said.
Secure Commerce Services Inc. is a privately held company founded in October 1998, and backed by AT&T Ventures and Spectrum Equity.