Citi Payment Exchange Expands To Canada

Building off what Citi calls a successful launch of its Citi Payment Exchange three years ago in the U.S., the bank has launched its payment-processing solution north of the border.

Now, Citi Payment Exchange has launched in Canada, allowing Citi’s Canadian clients to seamlessly migrate from paper-based instruments to electronic payments. The service also allows clients to have access to a secure payment portal, which benefits buyers’ Accounts Payables organizations that Citi claims offers “greater visibility, flexibility and control to their payees.”

“Citi Payment Exchange played a critical role in our ability to achieve our goals of reducing the number of check payments we made to our supply chain,” said Andrew Bernardi, Cash Operations Director at Navistar. “The secure platform and integrated supplier enrollment capabilities helped convert more than 1,100 suppliers to electronic payments and eliminate more than 70,000 check payments handled by our A/P group. Where once we lagged our peers, Navistar now is above industry averages for the amount of payments handled electronically, and we are seeing the benefits from greater process efficiency, lower costs and reduced exposure to potential payment fraud.”

Perks of the service, according to Citi, include:

• Managing and securely maintaining payee payment preferences, bank account details and related information.
• Simplifying processes around payment execution.
• Increasing visibility and control for suppliers and other payees.
• Creating opportunities for improved working capital and Commercial Card rebates.
• Reducing the potential for payment fraud.
• Converting payments to third-party payees into a relationship-building tool.

“U.S. clients who use Citi Payment Exchange have seen extremely positive results and, with many of our TTS Canada clients operating cross-border, this expansion was a logical next step. Citi Payment Exchange will help our current and prospective Canadian clients increase efficiency and reduce costs, while improving visibility and insight into payments costs,” Michael Fossaceca, North America Region Head, Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions.

Citi Payment Exchange also aims to help its clients manage marketing tasks, along with helping to enroll suppliers in electronic payments. Citi also offers its clients services to prioritize supply chain initiatives in order to target viable payees. Additionally, Citi helps educate suppliers on payment digitization — and offers multiple payment methods, which Citi claims will lead to higher check-to-electronic conversion rates for its clients.

“We are committed to innovate, constantly finding new ways to support our clients in their end-to-end process and make their payment management simpler and more efficient. The unique opportunity with Citi Payment Exchange is that it allows organizations to leverage the power of the next generation of corporate payments, such as virtual cards,” added Stephanie Zee, Director and Cash Product Head, Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions, Canada.

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