Bento For Business Taps Visa For Small Business Cash Flow

Small and medium-sized business spend management firm Bento for Business is teaming up with Visa to enhance cash flow management for SMB customers.

In a press release on Thursday (April 4), Bento announced its collaboration with Visa to integrate Visa’s business debit card into the Bento for Business platform. Current holders of Visa business debit cards will be given access to Bento’s financial solutions, including expense and spend management, budgeting and bookkeeping functionality. The integration provides real-time visibility into cash flow and control over spend before purchases are made, the companies said.

“The SMB segment is a priority for Visa, and we continue to be an advocate for the 30 million SMBs in the United States,” said Visa Global Head of Small and Medium Enterprises David Simon in a statement. “The Bento solution will evolve how Visa Business cardholders and merchants manage expenses and gain insights into their cash flow and financial management activities.”

In another statement, Bento for Business Chief Executive Officer Farhan Ahmad said 2018 brought “unparalleled growth and exceptional innovation” for the company, and included the launch of a range of small business financial tools, including virtual card management and open APIs, to facilitate integration with other partners.

“In 2019 and beyond, we will continue to expand our financial controls and cashless workflows for SMBs with a vision to deliver an all-in-one working capital management solution,” he added.

Bento’s announcement follows last year’s $9 million fundraising led by Edison Partners, in which Comcast Ventures and MissionOG also participated. At the time, Bento said it would use the funding to focus on propelling growth and increasing its talent within marketing and engineering.

“There is a massive latent demand among employers to seize full control over every dollar they spend, and stop non-authorized employee spending before profit-killing purchases can happen,” said Edison Partners General Partner Michael Kopelman in a statement when the funding was announced.