Today in B2B Payments: Hello Alice Launches Small Business Credit Card; The Sage Group Signs Deal to Acquire Lockstep

Today in B2B payments, Hello Alice has launched a small business credit card to help increase the availability of credit, while payroll, HR and accounting tech firm The Sage Group has signed a deal to acquire accounting FinTech Lockstep.

Hello Alice Launches Best-in-Class Small Business Credit Card With Mastercard

In a move to increase the availability of credit — including arrangements that improve credit scores — small-business-boosting platform Hello Alice has launched the Hello Alice Small Business Mastercard. The card, issued in collaboration with Mastercard and First National Bank of Omaha, comes with common programs such as cash back as well as business advice and insights.

The Sage Group Signs Deal to Acquire Connected Accounting Leader Lockstep

Accounting FinTech Lockstep will be bought by payroll, HR and accounting tech firm The Sage Group. This will allow Sage’s resources to boost Lockstep’s ways of automating accounting workflows between companies. Sage will now support Lockstep’s investing, along with supporting it to expand developer application programming interfaces (APIs) and adding accounting integrations to make more apps.

Why Are Travel Industry Vendor Payments So Complicated?

Sixty-two percent of travel and tourism businesses cite B2B payments as at least a somewhat significant pain point, according to the “Smart Receivables Playbook,” a PYMNTS and Flywire collaboration. The current travel resurgence is driving many businesses to take a hard look at the payment frictions holding them back and reimagining approaches to accounts receivable (AR) and accounts payable (AP) optimization through automation.

Logistics API Provider HyperTrack Raises $25M, Launches Tool for Last-Mile Delivery

Saying today’s last-mile delivery environment demands new solutions, HyperTrack, an application programming interface (API) platform for logistics tech builders, has raised $25 million in Series A funding and launched its latest tool for developers. HyperTrack Founder and CEO Kashyap Deorah said in a press release: “Our solution is transforming massive industries as disruptors continue to use our API platform to build logistics apps for the future.”

Voices of the CFO: Digitizing B2B Payments From First Steps to Sprinter Vans

Chief financial officers (CFOs) have certainly had their share of challenges to contend with. A slowing economy and rising inflation, geopolitical tension, lingering pandemic problems in the form of tight supply chains — and even tighter labor markets — have made keeping an eye on cash flow and keeping the business humming trickier than ever. All the better reason to find digital tools to ease the burden, as three veteran finance leaders told PYMNTS.

EVO Payments on Overcoming ERP Integration Obstacles

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are the platform on which companies manage everything from payroll to AR, so being able to integrate outside resources into the ERP system in real time is crucial for seamless business operations. Fauwaz Hussain, senior director of B2B software at EVO Payments, described to PYMNTS the top challenges companies can face with disconnected payment and ERP systems.

How FIs Are Meeting the Growing Brand Necessity of Embedded Banking

Financial institutions (FIs) that lack the ability to create digital solutions on their own can leverage embedded FinTech and banking solutions to meet their SMB clients’ digital needs. The “Next-Gen Commercial Banking Tracker®,” a PYMNTS and FISPAN collaboration, explores SMBs’ evolving expectations for in-branch versus online banking and how FIs can meet these expectations with embedded and open banking solutions.

Electronics Retailer B.TECH Debuts Omnichannel Platform for Egyptian Merchants

Egyptian consumer electronics retailer B.TECH has launched “deel,” an omnichannel platform for local merchants that offers services to ensure efficiency and transparency while helping merchants start and further grow their business. Among its services are inventory management, B2B and B2C marketplace listing, marketing solutions, doorstep delivery, store designs and training courses.

Neat Company Nixes Fees for ACH Transactions

The Neat Company has eliminated the standard 1% fee for automated clearing house (ACH) transactions, a move the company said makes it unique among small business financial platforms. The company’s platform is free for small businesses that have $29,000 of invoices paid through bank transfer each year. Anything beyond that is money saved for Neat subscribers.

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