Working to create a viable mobile payments ecosystem, mobile wallet startup Lemon has started the Lemon Network, according to VentureBeat.com.

Merchants can join the network through a free software development kit that puts a Lemon button at the checkout site. For Lemon users, this means one-touch payments, the site said.

The Lemon app lets users store credit cards, loyalty cards, identification and other similar information in their phones, and it features tools for saving receipts, creating expense reports, monitoring accounts and balance updates, and receiving alerts about security and card expiration, according to the site:

The company is going a step further now by adding merchants into the network. Tapping the Lemon button at checkout will send the customer's payment information securely to the merchant for processing. Merchants can communicate with their customers about billing inquiries and questionable transactions through Lemon.

"Checkout on mobile sucks," said chief sales officer Jenna Wyer in an interview with VentureBeat. "We are focused on making mobile payments easier for consumers and it is a natural evolution to start partnering with merchants. There are so many obstacles to facilitating an easy mobile checkout experience. Lemon Network will help businesses simplify their checkout process, so they can acquire new customers and support their existing ones."

The Palo Alto, Calif.-based Lemon has raised $8 million from investors, according to VentureBeat.

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