Mastercard and Oracle Partner to Automate B2B Payments

Mastercard and Oracle have announced a partnership to automate B2B payments for enterprise customers.

The collaboration will integrate Mastercard’s virtual card platform into the Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), automating the B2B finance and payment process, the companies said in a Tuesday (Sept. 19) press release.

The partnership aims to address the challenges faced by many companies in making commercial payments, such as disparate data, systems and processes, according to the press release. By leveraging Mastercard’s virtual card technology, Oracle will enable organizations to securely connect and share information across all trading parties, simplifying end-to-end financial transactions for corporate customers. 

Integrating Mastercard’s virtual card technology into Oracle Cloud ERP will reduce implementation work and simplify card program setup, configuration and technical complexity, the release said. This will benefit mutual Oracle Cloud ERP and Mastercard customers, who will be able to use virtual cards for supplier invoice payments and corporate purchases. 

For supplier invoice payments, organizations can automate virtual card generation and high-volume payment runs, streamline the bank reconciliation process and facilitate automatic direct transfers to the supplier’s bank accounts, the release said. This end-to-end payment processing includes streamlined remittance reconciliation for suppliers.

For corporate purchases, organizations can replace traditional payment methods with secure virtual cards, increasing fraud protection, per the release. Procurement teams can manage employee virtual card requests, supporting business purchases on demand.

PYMNTS Intelligence has found that companies are incorporating virtual cards into their B2B payment processes to improve cash flow, enhance security and enable accounts payable (AP) automation more seamlessly than when they rely on methods like paper checks. 

Enabling virtual card acceptance through accounts receivable (AR) automation also can increase efficiency and help businesses capture large spend opportunities, according to “B2B Digital Payments,” a PYMNTS and American Express collaboration.

Through the Mastercard-Oracle partnership, customers can make payments via Mastercard’s global payments network, according to the press release. Customers can also activate services with their banks to manage cash flow, improve fraud protection and receive program incentives. Suppliers will benefit from faster payment, lower collection risk and streamlined accounts receivable. 

HSBC, among other major banks, is utilizing the solution to improve its user experience and promote virtual payment card adoption, the release said. HSBC will be the first bank to offer the embedded virtual card experience to Oracle customers in the U.S. and the U.K.