Dealer Merchant Services

What Dealer Merchant Services does

Dealer Merchant Services (DMS), founded in 2020 by Amberly Allen and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a specialized payment processing platform purpose-built for franchised automotive dealerships across the United States. The company's core offering is a US Patent-backed compliant surcharge program that enables dealers to pass credit card processing fees to customers while remaining compliant with card brand rules and state surcharging regulations, supplemented by dual pricing and interchange-plus pricing alternatives. Supporting infrastructure includes a dealer-specific payment gateway that captures Level 3 line-item detail for Visa CEDP compliance, a portfolio of POS hardware (DeJavoo Z11/Z9, Valor terminal line), Text2Pay SMS payment requests, dealer-specific signage, and a proprietary RIM (Related, Immediate, Maintenance) training methodology for dealership staff. The platform serves sales, F&I, service, and parts departments within single-rooftop SMB dealerships and multi-rooftop enterprise dealer groups.

DMS operates a sales-led, event-driven go-to-market motion, with a 40-person direct sales team, 400+ years of combined automotive experience, and exclusive endorsed-partner relationships with 17 state automobile dealer associations providing preferential channel access. Marketing is anchored on NADA webinars (3,700+ dealers educated), industry event presence (NADA Show 2026 debut), content marketing, LinkedIn, and earned media in outlets including AutoSuccess, CBT News, and Authority Magazine. As of acquisition, the company served 1,000+ dealership rooftops across 45 states, with claimed dealer savings of $5,000-$15,000 per rooftop monthly and cumulative dealer savings exceeding $93M.

In October 2025, DMS was acquired by Priority Technology Holdings (NASDAQ: PRTH), a publicly-traded fintech, and rebranded as Priority Commerce Automotive. Founder Amberly Allen and Laura Sherman continued as Managing Partners, with Jenine Loving-Drake as Chief Performance Officer. Under Priority ownership, DMS targets scaling to 2,000 rooftops and $3.25B in annual processing volume within 15 months, leveraging Priority's connected commerce and banking-as-a-service capabilities to deepen wallet share within the automotive retail vertical.

Name

Dealer Merchant Services

Legal name

Dealer Merchant Services

Website

https://www.dealermerchantservices.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

DMS is a Dallas-based automotive payment processing company that helps franchised auto dealerships reduce credit card processing fees via US Patent-backed compliant surcharge programs and dual pricing, serving 1,000+ rooftops across 45 states; acquired by Priority Technology Holdings in October 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Automotive Payment Processing

akta.pro primary industry

High-Risk / Specialty Merchant Acquirers (FSAMABAE)

Keywords

• Automotive payment processing
• Credit card surcharging
• Merchant services
• Dealership payment solutions
• POS hardware terminals

Headquarters

HQ city

Dallas

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Payment Processing Fees: Transaction-based fees charged to dealerships for processing credit card payments. Dealerships save by passing fees to customers through compliant surcharging. Primary revenue stream from interchange and transaction fees.
2. Equipment and Hardware Sales: Sale and installation of payment terminals and hardware systems for dealerships. Hardware backed by US Patent.
3. Training and Support Services: Ongoing training and support services for dealership staff on payment processing systems and compliance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Dealer Merchant Services (now Priority Commerce Automotive) provides credit card payment processing and fee-recovery solutions exclusively for franchised automotive dealerships. The core offering is a U.S. Patent-backed compliant surcharge program, complemented by dual pricing, interchange-plus pricing, Text2Pay SMS payments, dealer-specific POS hardware (DeJavoo Z11, Z9, Valor Terminal Line), and proprietary RIM training methodology that helps dealers recover $5,000-$15,000 per rooftop monthly through legally compliant surcharging.

Product overview

Priority Commerce Automotive (formerly Dealer Merchant Services) operates as a specialized automotive fintech and payment processing platform. The core offering is a U.S. Patent-backed compliant surcharge program, alongside dual pricing and Interchange Plus pricing alternatives. These payment solutions are delivered through a product portfolio that includes dealer-specific POS terminals (DeJavoo Z11, DeJavoo Z9, Valor Terminal Line), Text2Pay SMS payment capabilities, dealer-specific signage, and comprehensive training and support services. The platform targets automotive dealerships, helping them reduce credit card processing fees by passing those costs to customers in a legally compliant manner. Following its October 2025 acquisition by Priority Technology Holdings, the company now operates under the Priority Commerce Automotive brand, integrating with Priority's broader unified commerce and treasury solutions platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Compliant Surcharge Program A dealer-specific compliant surcharge program backed by a U.S. Patent, enabling automotive dealers to pass credit card processing fees to customers while maintaining compliance with card brand rules and state laws. Targeted at franchised new and used car and truck dealerships.
• Text2Pay

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 75% savings on credit card processing fees
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Priority Technology HoldingscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 October 2025Priority Technology Holdings acquired Dealer Merchant Services in October 2025, forming Priority Commerce Automotive. The acquisition brings together DMS's dealership expertise and customer relationships with Priority's connected commerce platform and banking capabilities. Leadership team joined Priority post-acquisition.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dealer-merchant-services-dms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dealer Merchant Services