i2c and Beyon Money Launch Corporate Card Partnership

Digital banking/payments firm i2c has launched a partnership with Beyon Money Business.

The collaboration, announced Monday (July 22), will see the firms launch a corporate expense card program for the small to midsize enterprise (SME) sector, targeting businesses in Bahrain before eventually expanding to the Gulf Cooperation Council states.

“The launch of the Beyon Money Business corporate card program is part of our overall effort to provide an infrastructure that supports and accelerates the company’s growth and operational efficiency,” Serena Smith, chief client officer of i2c, said in a news release.

“This launch is a prime example of how our expansive network and certifications with major card brands ensure broad and seamless regional accessibility.”

According to the release, the program will leverage i2c’s modular building block Software-as-a-Service technology to help companies manage their expenses through “enhanced functionality” and security features like 3D security for eCommerce transactions.

The companies say their partnership is in response to a growing need for specialized corporate financial tools.

As PYMNTS wrote earlier this year, businesses are increasingly turning to corporate cards to manage their B2B spend, “ensuring that there is enough capital on hand for whatever the marketplace throws their way.”

Even companies in traditional industries like the transportation and logistics sector, where lockboxes and paper checks remain popular, are exploring commercial cards as a tool for managing their operations and employee spend.

“This transition is being accelerated by the commercial landscape evolving toward a more equitable sharing of credit card transaction costs,” PYMNTS wrote. “While historically, sellers bore the brunt of these costs, the value proposition for each party involved in a B2B card transaction is constantly being reevaluated.”

For example, businesses can negotiate longer terms with their commercial card issuers, letting them defer payments while still maintaining positive relationships with suppliers, optimizing cash flow and working capital.

Meanwhile, PYMNTS spoke earlier this month with Seth Perlman, global head of product at i2c, who said that as open banking becomes more prevalent in the U.S., application programming interfaces (APIs) will become more widely known and appreciated.

An API, he said, as part of the “What’s Next in Payments” series, “is really just the interface to whatever’s ‘underneath’ it in terms of financial services or processing or commerce. So ultimately, an API is a scalable and rapid way to integrate to an underlying service, but it doesn’t take the place of whatever processing infrastructure, or other capabilities, lie underneath it.”