Mastercard Launches V-Card Acceptance Tool

Mastercard is launching a new service designed to make it easier for B2B vendors to accept virtual cards.

The payments and technology giant announced Tuesday (July 9) the rollout of its Virtual Card Receivables Service, a tool to digitize the virtual card payment acceptance and reconciliation process for businesses. The service aggregates virtual card payment data from Mastercard issuers — including the single-use virtual card number, as well as accompanying invoice and SKU information — and compiles it into a comprehensive file in the format preferred by vendors. The file can be sent as a Microsoft Excel or CSV document, among other types.

This offers an alternative to the traditional methods that virtual card payment information is submitted to a vendor, which often occurs via fax or email. That data is often fragmented and unstandardized, Mastercard explained, forcing vendors to manually take that data, reformat it, and re-enter it in their back office systems.

According to Mastercard, this consolidation of virtual payment data can more easily be integrated into suppliers’ existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) and other back-office systems, and supports reconciliation and cash flow forecasting processes.

Mastercard is collaborating with invoice-to-cash and accounts receivable technology firm VersaPay to deliver the solution, the companies noted.

“As more companies turn to virtual card payments, we’re focused on simplifying processes and enhancing the user experience across the ecosystem,” said Mastercard Senior Vice President, Large Market Products and Platform Product Management Jeff Feuerstein in a statement. “By simplifying card reconciliation, we’re helping suppliers streamline their accounts receivable processes, making data available faster and with the same security and privacy standards we uphold for all Mastercard products and services.”

“We are excited to work with a global payments leader like Mastercard,” said VersaPay CEO Craig O’Neill in another statement. “Through our joint initiative, we will improve the experience of accepting virtual credit cards for businesses across the U.S., Canada and around the globe.”

The service is available to FinTech and financial institutions that can extend the offering to their own corporate customers, the press release noted.