FairFX Enhances Mastercard Issuing, SME Finance Capabilities

Cross-border payments company FairFX can now self-issue Mastercard-branded cards, a capability the company said enables the firm to have multiple options when issuing cards across its product suite.

In a press release sent to PYMNTS on Thursday (April 5), FairFX said its eMoney license and status as a principal member of Mastercard enables the company to self-issue cards to its corporate customers.

FairFX said it is also expanding commercial finance capabilities to corporate banking users though a partnership with Alternative Business Funding to link businesses to financiers. The solution will be integrated into its existing CardOneBanking platform to broaden its capabilities.

“Achieving the milestones of issuing the first cards under our Mastercard license and adding a commercial finance capability to our digital banking suite are important steps forward for the FairFX Group,” stated FairFX CEO Ian Strafford-Taylor in a statement. “The successful launch of self-issuance is testament to the Group working as a unified team with the CardOneBanking … team in Chester, ably led by CEO and Banking Head Adam Rigler, alongside other areas in the Group. Together, these successes tie in with our twin strategies of increasing efficiency whilst adding new products.”

“Self-issuance enables us to better manage the service levels we can offer to our customers, which will further improve customer satisfaction and thereby retention,” added Rigler, who also serves as Head of Banking for FairFX Group. “Furthermore, offering quick and simple access to commercial finance is in response to requests from our current customer base as obtaining funding for SMEs from traditional lenders can be difficult and time-consuming.”

FairFX first announced last December that it secured approval to issue Mastercard-branded cards across Europe for its corporate customers. At the time, the company said the capability propelled its ability to reduce reliance on third-party service providers.

A month prior, FairFX announced plans to launch its small business current account, which links small businesses to account services and a corporate card for cross-border payments. That feature is a result of FairFX’s acquisition of CardOne last year for $19.5 million.