The procurement documents claim RingGo is now processing £400m in payments in the UK each year.
Previously part of BMW, RingGo is now owned by European parking technology business EasyPark, which boasted sales of €252m euros in 2022, up from €162m the year before, according to accounts filed for its parent company.
It has since snapped up rivals across the continent, with the business owned by private equity firms Verdane and Vitruvian Partners.
EasyPark’s rivals include PayByPhone, which until November was owned by Germany’s Porsche dynasty before being snapped up by US payments business Fleetcor, and JustPark, which recently merged with a US rival.
Last August, in a submission to MPs, RingGo said it processed roughly 250 million UK transactions per year, adding that it soon expected this figure to “dramatically increase”.
That growth is being fuelled by a decision by mobile networks to shut down their current ageing 3G technology around the UK by the end of 2025.
Minutes from Bromley Council show that “all of the pay and display machines in operation across the borough had a 3G sim card within them”, which would have left “no way of knowing if a machine was out of order, the cash box was full or needed a new ticket roll”.
As a result, the council decided to remove all cash machines and replace them with RingGo pay stations.
A spokesman for the Local Government Association said councils have been forced to “adapt to changing consumer trends and the impact of the 3G network switch-off on parking machines” while adding “parking apps can bring additional benefits, such as the ability to extend your stay without going back to the payment machine and be reminded of when your parking session is about to expire”.
Yet the switch to digital also comes with new risks. Local authorities have been forced to warn drivers of malicious QR codes being placed on RingGo signs, with fraudsters attempting to trick users into scanning the barcode.
While drivers may be frustrated by having to download a different app every time they park, that could be about to change.
The Government has been working on a National Parking Platform, which should allow multiple apps to work in any council car park – while also including penalty notices and electric vehicle charging apps.
It is a move RingGo says it welcomes: “It will empower the driver, who will be able to choose a provider based on their individual preferences.”
That choice, however, is unlikely to include cash for much longer.