Keeping track of paper receipts is a hassle that seems like it should've gone extinct in the digital age. But it could still happen, if D.C.-based startup Piper has its way.
Piper bypasses the usual mounds of paper and scattered emails by putting the details of all your receipts in one place, automatically organized. It's a straightforward enough idea, but enticing enough to get Piper a deal with popular expense reporting software developer Expensify. The deal including the first investment by its new Expensify Ventures investment fund.
"It's an investment and a licensing deal," Piper CEO Morgan Giddings told DC Inno. "We'll be integrated on the back end of its software for their users."
Piper launched three years ago as a budgeting tool before pivoting six months in. The idea is to digitize the entire receipt process, by working with both merchants and consumers so that neither side has to deal with paper. Or an email, for that matter (as you get with Square or Apple Pay).
Instead of getting a piece of paper or an email, the receipt is sent into the cloud, categorized and stored for later retrieval. Giddings described it as useful for those who relentlessly save every last receipt in a shoebox, as well as those who never hang on to any receipts at all. Integrating into Expensify gets the service to a large number of another group—people who use business accounts for their transactions. But Piper is not a payment system itself, as Giddings was quick to point out. The service comes into play after that point, meaning it can be used much more broadly.
"It's not like Apple Pay," Giddings said. "It's used at the last step—any card or mobile wallet can use it."
Security focus
Although Piper collects information only after the exchange of money, it still has to impress its users with its security. Getting that right was important for getting Expensify, with its list of business clients, interested in adding Piper to its features.
"We wouldn't be around very long if we didn't think about cybersecurity all the time," Giddings said. "That's true for any cloud company."
Expensify Ventures is using some of the $17.5 million that Expensify raised earlier this year for its investment in new tools to make life easier for business travelers. Giddings wouldn't say the exact amount invested, or how much the company has raised in total.
Piper also gained some attention last winter when it became the only U.S. company to go to South Korea and compete at the Startup Nations International Summit.
With the new investment and licensing money, Giddings said the next step is laying the foundation for more growth. That means scouting out new talent and new locations—not always easy with the high demand for talent in the area, according to Giddings.
"As a startup, the most important things are people and space," she said. "That's what we're looking to add now."
Despite the fight for talent, Giddings said the demand for easing the seemingly small, yet pervasive annoyance of dealing with receipts—combined with the Expensify—raises the chances that lots of new users will be signing up for Piper.
"Receipts shouldn't be difficult," Giddings said. "People have enough stress in their lives."
