PDI Technologies

In 1983, Greg Gilkerson founded Professional Datasolutions, Inc. (PDI), and within 15 years the company was serving more than 10,000 convenience retail sites; in 1999 it released its first enterprise product, PDI Petroleum Distribution. In 2012, Gilkerson was inducted into the PCATS/Convenience Store News Technology Hall of Fame.⁠[1][1][1]

In 2015, PDI, then serving more than 25,000 sites, was acquired by the San Francisco private equity fund Luminate Capital, and it subsequently received a strategic growth investment from TA Associates (which had partnered with management since May 2016). In August 2017, Genstar Capital invested in PDI, with TA Associates continuing as a significant shareholder and Lazard serving as PDI’s financial advisor; at the time, PDI was headquartered in Temple, Texas, had more than 1,200 customers in 50 countries, and was led by chief executive officer Jimmy Frangis. By the end of 2017, PDI served more than 100,000 sites in more than 50 countries.⁠[1][1][2][2][2][2][2][2][2][1]

On April 11, 2018, PDI announced the acquisition of Excentus, a Dallas provider of loyalty and coalition marketing solutions, through which it entered the consumer loyalty and engagement field. Excentus owned and operated the Fuel Rewards program, a multi-merchant coalition loyalty program that then had more than 14.5 million members and had saved its members more than $1 billion on fuel since its launch in 2012.⁠[3][4][3][3]

On April 26, 2018, PDI announced the opening of its global headquarters in Alpharetta, Georgia, with its North American operation remaining headquartered in Temple, Texas. In less than two years, PDI had completed nine acquisitions, including the 2018 acquisitions of the logistics software provider TouchStar and of Excentus; the company then had 15 offices worldwide and customers in more than 50 countries.⁠[5][5][5][5][5]

On March 20, 2019, PDI announced an investment from Insight Venture Partners, with Genstar and TA Associates both retaining minority stakes; Lazard served as PDI’s financial advisor, and the terms of the deal were not disclosed. At the time, PDI had more than 1,500 customers covering more than 200,000 sites worldwide. The same year, PDI launched fuel pricing software in North America and a marketing cloud solution.⁠[6][7][6][6][1]

On December 18, 2020, PDI announced the acquisition of the managed security services provider Cybera and of ControlScan Managed Security Services, entering the cloud security and software-defined wide-area networking field and creating the PDI Security Solutions line of business, with plans to protect the data and systems of convenience stores, quick-service restaurants, and other multi-site operators.⁠[8][8][8]

On April 27, 2021, PDI announced that it had acquired GasBuddy, the crowdsourced gas-price app. At the time, GasBuddy had five million active mobile users and provided gas price information on 150,000 stations across North America; Berenson & Company and Moelis & Company served as exclusive financial advisors to PDI and GasBuddy, respectively. PDI said the acquisition extended its ability to deliver promotional offers and communications directly to consumers and to engage consumers in convenience store and petroleum loyalty programs; it planned to enhance GasBuddy to help convenience stores attract new customers to their stores, deliver offers funded by consumer packaged goods brands, and enroll consumers in retailers’ loyalty programs, to let retailers extend personalized fuel pricing offers in real time to consumers on-site or driving nearby and promote in-store products, and to integrate GasBuddy Business Pages with existing PDI products so that retailers gain a more holistic view of consumer sentiment, store visits, and purchasing behavior.⁠[9][9][9][9][9][9][9][9]

The same year, PDI created a direct-to-consumer channel for managing real-time promotions and loyalty programs.⁠[1]

On September 1, 2021, PDI announced that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire Orbis Technologies Ltd (Orbis Tech), a provider of cloud-based point of sale, back-office, and home-office software, strengthening its international software offerings. On December 7 of that year, PDI announced the acquisition of Koupon, which provides offer delivery for convenience retailers and consumer packaged goods brands, expanding its Offer Network.⁠[10][10][4][4][4]

On January 19, 2022, PDI announced the acquisition of the British financial technology company Universe Group plc and its subsidiaries htec and Celtech; on February 16 it announced the acquisition of Azpiral, an Irish provider of cloud-based consumer engagement solutions, which PDI described as the first step in expanding its consumer engagement business beyond North America; and on March 1 it announced the acquisition of GreenPrint, an Atlanta provider of corporate sustainability solutions, as the foundation of the newly established PDI Sustainability Solutions.⁠[11][11][12][12][12][13][13]

On August 25, 2022, PDI announced that it was renaming itself PDI Technologies, with a new logo and the website pditechnologies.com. The company’s workforce had grown from about 1,200 in early 2020 to nearly 2,000 in August 2022, and its business had expanded into areas including payments, promotions and offers, security, point of sale, sustainability, and data analytics; it also owned and operated two consumer businesses, the Fuel Rewards program and GasBuddy, which together connected more than 20 million active users.⁠[14][14][14][14][14]

On February 15, 2023, PDI Technologies announced the acquisition of Blue Cow Software, a fuel oil and propane delivery management software provider, from Repay Holdings; on August 11 it announced the acquisition of Skupos, a platform connecting independent convenience stores with consumer packaged goods brands. On June 20, 2024, it announced the acquisition of Nuspire, a Michigan managed security services provider, the first acquisition for its security business; on December 2 it announced the acquisition of the Comdata Merchant Solutions business from Corpay, consisting of point-of-sale software and hardware for truck stops and unattended commercial fueling sites. On April 1, 2025, it announced the acquisition of P97 Networks, a Houston mobile commerce and digital marketing platform used by fuel brands including CITGO, ExxonMobil, and Shell to process mobile payments.⁠[15][15][16][16][17][17][17][17][18][18][18][19][19][19]

On April 28, 2025, Equilon Enterprises, doing business as Shell Oil Products U.S., completed its acquisition of the Fuel Rewards program from PDI Technologies and Excentus, taking full control of the program, which provides fuel discounts to drivers at more than 12,000 Shell stations in the United States. PDI Technologies remained the program’s technology and service provider.⁠[20][20][20][20]

On March 26, 2026, PDI Technologies announced PDIQ, an artificial intelligence foundation embedded in the workflows of its products, including enterprise resource planning, point of sale, and loyalty, that automates routine tasks, provides personalized insights, and powers intelligent agents; the company deployed it internally first and then rolled it out to customers in phases.⁠[21][21][21][21][21][21][21]

As of October 2026, PDI Technologies serves customers in more than 60 countries, covering more than 200,000 convenience and petroleum wholesale sites, has regional offices in the United States, EMEA, and APAC, and owns and operates GasBuddy. Jimmy Frangis is chief executive officer; board members include Deven Parekh, Eli Weiss, and Hythem T. El-Nazer, who at the time of Insight’s 2019 investment were managing directors of Insight Venture Partners, Genstar Capital, and TA Associates, respectively.⁠[1][1][1][22][23][23][6][23][23][6]

PDI Technologies: Official website: https://pditechnologies.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[1]

GasBuddy: Official website: https://www.gasbuddy.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[9]

X: Public account: https://x.com/pditechnologies (opens in a new window)⁠[1]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Public profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pdi-technologies (opens in a new window)⁠[1]

YouTube: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/PDI-tech (opens in a new window)⁠[1]