Concur Inks Another Virtual Card Deal

Travel and expense management firm Concur is boosting its virtual card support thanks to an expanded collaboration with hotel solutions firm HRS.

Reports on Wednesday (July 27) said HRS will support virtual card payments via the Concur platform.

“When a traveler logs into Concur and they’re booking their reservation, it’s triggered that it’s a virtual card transaction,” explained HRS Head of Interface Solutions Lyndsey Tufo in an interview with Business Travel News. Once the booking is complete, the virtual card is passed from the card issuer to the hotel.

The hotel will then receive a fax to confirm the payment, while the HRS mobile app will send a mobile confirmation to the business traveler that he or she can show to the front desk to confirm the reservation.

Support for virtual card payments will show up in Concur by the first quarter of next year, reports said.

HRS has an existing partnership with Concur, which was expanded in March. Together with Hertz, the deal with HRS expanded Concur’s TripLink list of partners, allowing corporate clients to book through these travel service providers and manage the data from trips.

“Today’s customers expect integrated solutions, seamless processes and transparency,” stated HRS CEO Tobias Ragge following the March announcement. “This new level of the longstanding partnership between HRS and Concur will enable corporates to streamline the booking and expense management process.”

Concur has moved to heighten its support of virtual card payments, often considered among the safest payment methods for business travelers, as v-cards can only be used once, are issued for a specific value and are designated for purchases at a specific seller.

Earlier this month, Concur revealed a partnership with virtual card technology GraspPAY, which is now integrated into the expense management platform, enabling business travelers to get a virtual card issued for their bookings made through Concur.