GovTech Leader PayIt Acquires Sovereign Sportsman Solutions, Adding Outdoor Recreation and Licensing to its Government Customer Experience and Payments Offering

Combined company leads modernization of resident-government interactions; now serves 100M people in North America

KANSAS CITY, Mo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PayIt, the leader in digital customer experience solutions with integrated payments for state, local, and provincial governments, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire innovative conservation technology provider Sovereign Sportsman Solutions (S3). The acquisition adds a broad suite of outdoor recreation solutions to PayIt’s high-growth offerings in property tax, DMV, courts, and more. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of May.

Leading state and local government agencies at the forefront of customer experience use PayIt and S3 to help them more effectively achieve their missions, modernize operations, and engage residents. The combined company will serve 100M residents in North America.

“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome S3’s customers, software, and passionate team, and to accelerate our vision to transform digital service delivery,” said John Thomson, PayIt founder and CEO. “Leading agencies are hungry for innovative partners like PayIt and S3. This strategic acquisition affirms the new standard for GovTech: solutions that dramatically improve mission achievement and modernize the experience for residents.”

S3 provides solutions for state conservation agencies to engage outdoors enthusiasts at scale. The S3 platform includes licensing and permitting solutions for hunting and fishing, recreational vehicles, boats, volunteer and event management, and specialty permits.

The transaction comes during a sea change in how government agencies approach digital services. Public sector organizations have embraced cloud-native solutions like PayIt and S3 to quickly digitize access, engage residents, and drive operational efficiency, while benefiting from continuous innovation not possible via legacy on-premise custom solutions.

"This is an exciting next chapter for S3, our partners, and the outdoors enthusiasts they serve," said Chris Willard, S3 Chief Customer Officer. "As part of PayIt, we will have expanded ability to support our customers' mission outcomes, innovate faster, and help drive the technology advancements that the conservation community deserves."

Combining PayIt and S3 paves the way to a shared vision of a more unified resident experience across jurisdictions and agencies. Conservation leaders will benefit from PayIt’s expertise in rich front-end experiences to accelerate their recruitment, retention, and reactivation (R3) programs for outdoors enthusiasts. S3’s expertise in licensing and customer management will help unlock additional value for state and local agencies, bringing to market a widening range of proven, truly modern solutions for state and local governments.

PayIt recently appointed new executives in finance, sales, and product, and has been listed in the GovTech 100 for seven continuous years. With offices in Kansas City, Nashville, and Toronto, PayIt serves customers throughout North America.

About PayIt

PayIt is the solution state and local government agencies use to take the friction out of resident transactions. Our composable customer experience platform enables agencies to collect revenue faster, improve efficiency and sustainability, and give people the smooth digital experience they have come to expect online. PayIt integrates into any back-office system, launches in about 90 days, and provides residents with a single GovWallet™ to store digital licenses and registrations, transaction history, receipts, and payment methods for multiple agencies. Serving more than 100 million residents in North America, we have received awards from Fast Company, StateScoop, and have been listed in the GovTech 100 for seven years and counting.

PayIt: Smarter for government. Easier for everyone.

About S3

S3 is a market leader in innovative conservation technology. The S3 CORE platform provides the most robust, scalable and dependable solution for state agencies who strive to provide the best customer experience for their citizens. We make it easier for people to access and enjoy the outdoors by pairing the most modern, efficient, and flexible technology in the market with the industry’s most experienced and passionate professionals. For more information, please visit www.s3gov.com.