Inspire Commerce, developer of the world’s first universal financial transaction technology platform, today closed its $500,000 seed funding round with investments from merchant services provider Axia and The Story Stock Exchange venture fund. The proceeds will be used to support product development, sales, and marketing as the company prepares to expand and deploy its InspirePay.com product and .pay™ payment framework.

“From friends and family, to the Story Stock Fund and more sophisticated AngelList investors like Adii Pienaar of WooThemes, and now strategic investors like Axia, we’re thrilled to close out our first round of funding,” said Mark Fischer, CEO of Inspire Commerce. “We appreciate all our initial investors and Axia’s involvement in closing out our first round of funding, which stands as strong validation for our technology roadmap.”

“As a payments processing services provider, solving merchants’ real-world problems and simplifying transactions are strategic imperatives for Axia, and for the entire payments industry,” said Randy Clark, CEO of Axia. “We’re pleased to support the development and deployment of the .pay framework, and with it, the creation of open, shared protocols across multiple payment methods.”

InspirePay, the first payment application built on top of the .pay™ framework, allows anyone to set up a “pay me page” and “get paid” across a number of payment options including Dwolla, Paypal, and almost any Merchant Service Provider in the U.S. The application’s user base has increased 25 percent every month since launch, and has been enthusiastically adopted by consultants, solopreneurs, lawyers, small businesses and thousands of individuals who want to receive money online.

About Inspire Commerce

Inspire Commerce is a financial technology solutions provider for merchants, customers and developers who want to transact online. The company’s .pay™ framework aggregates payment options — from credit cards to online payment services — into a single hub, providing businesses and consumers with a streamlined, secure way to make and receive payments. InspirePay, the first application built on the .pay framework, allows anyone to get paid online using any method via their own branded payment page. Inspire Commerce is a triple-bottom-line company based in Boulder. For more information, visit: www.inspirecommerce.com.