Corporate Cards Eye Partnerships To Drive Value

A commercial card product that merely facilitates transactions is no longer enough for small businesses and corporates in search of an enhanced card payment experience. In order to drive value for cardholders, commercial card players this week have shown the power in collaboration to bolster rewards offerings, automate expense reports and more. Plus, new evidence signals strengthening corporate card spend.

City National Bank, Extend Collaborate On Virtual Cards

In an effort to introduce virtual commercial cards to its business customers, City National Bank has revealed a partnership with Extend, a collaboration that enables the bank to launch Visa commercial virtual cards. The corporate payment products support functionality with mobile wallets Google Pay and Apple Pay, the companies said, noting that the offering allows business managers to issue and send virtual cards to employees, establish controls and limits on how much can be spent with the card and on which suppliers, and access transaction data.

The firms also highlighted the security of the virtual cards, the result of Visa’s Token Service. “Until now, no one has been able to tokenize true virtual cards for mobile wallets, which brings virtual cards to the point of sale — a hurdle that has stood in the way of serious mass adoption,” said Extend CEO and Co-Founder Andrew Jamison in a statement.

American Express Q2 Stats Show Steady Biz Card Volume

New data from American Express released last week revealed a gradual recovery of business spending volumes on the company’s commercial card products. Reports in Travel Weekly said Amex’s Global Commercial Services unit notched $109.1 billion in transaction volume during the fourth quarter of 2020, up from $98.5 billion in Q3, and $82.8 billion in Q2. Still, spending volume remained 18 percent lower than Q4 2019, according to reports.

Other signs pointing to a positive corporate spend trajectory include an increase in average cardholder spend, which hit $7,515 in Q4, up from $6,776 in Q3. A year-over-year in average spend decline also shows signs of slowing town, with T&E spend also showing gradual improvement in Q4, reports said.

Mooncard Entices Businesses With Miles Rewards

Rewards are a major selling point for commercial cards with business users, and one company in France is turning to miles rewards in order to gain traction. The company recently revealed a partnership with Air France loyalty program Flying Blue, making Mooncard the first corporate card company in France that allows cardholders to accumulate miles by using its range of business card products. In addition to racking up miles, the card also connects users to other benefits including automatic expense report generation, travel insurance and personal assistance.

While business travel remains limited, Mooncard appears to be banking on its return. In a statement, Mooncard President and Co-Founder Tristan Leteurtre said, “Improving daily life is essential for the well-being of employees and therefore the good health of our companies.”

Archa Taps i2c For Corporate Card Platform

A string of new card processing partnerships recently announced by payment technology provider i2c includes a collaboration with Archa. The Australian company is implementing i2c technology to develop a corporate card platform that aims to fill the gap in the market left by traditional banks that rarely underwrite corporate cards for small businesses, the company said in a recent announcement.

Also wielding i2c technology is Community Bank of the Chesapeake, which said the partnership will enable the financial institution to develop a new credit program for both businesses and consumers.