ST. PETERSBURG — Revolution Money Inc. has raised more than $80 million in capital, including $20 million over the summer, as the startup firm strives to make its mark in the payments industry.

The money is funding operations, customer growth and technology development, said Darren Thompson, CFO at Revolution Money, a fast-growing firm that in one year has expanded to more than 100 employees, 85 percent of them at its downtown headquarters.

Revolution Money says its RevolutionCard credit card and MoneyExchange online person-to-person money transfer product cost less and provide greater security than better-known brands such as MasterCard, Visa and PayPal.

Investor interest has been piqued because there’s strong demand for cheaper payment methods in a cost-conscious and credit-crunched economy, said Adil Moussa, an analyst at Aite Group LLC. “I’m not surprised by how they [raised capital] because there is so much demand for alternative payments,” Moussa said.

Editor's Note: Want to see (according to TechCrunch) 50 companies most likely to survive the economic downturn? Then click here. Keep in mind, it's in "money raised" order, which doesn't mean a thing considering that biometric payment processor Pay By Touch...raised enough money to be SECOND on TechCrunchies Top 50 list...(if they were still in existence).