Visa has introduced Visa Commercial Integrated Partners, a new initiative aimed at improving integration between fintechs and Visa’s commercial offerings through its commercial platform.
The programme will provide advanced APIs that allow Visa products to be embedded within the applications of business partners.
These integrations will also be accessible to Visa’s financial institution clients, enabling them to offer new payment functionalities to their business customers.
The initiative is intended to provide fintechs and other business software providers with the tools and framework to more easily incorporate payment capabilities into their platforms.
This will allow commercial issuers of Visa credentials to be more effectively integrated within those systems.
Rather than requiring direct and often resource-intensive technical integrations with platforms such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) or fleet management systems, financial institutions using Visa’s commercial platform can now offer virtual payments and data services more efficiently.
This approach can help institutions reduce the time and cost typically associated with technical development.
Car IQ, a company specialising in fleet and vehicle technology, is among the first partners to join the programme.
Their integration with the commercial platform will enable clients to use Car IQ’s software to facilitate in-app payments using virtual cards at fuel providers.
According to Visa, this could eliminate the need for extensive supplier onboarding and technical integration, potentially saving between 18 and 24 months of due diligence and development work.
Visa stated that the initiative also reduces development time and costs for fintechs, allowing them to focus on product innovation and customer experience, while enabling their users to make payments using existing Commercial Card credentials.
Financial institutions will be able to use the programme to provide new payment capabilities to their clients, including those in ERP systems, mobile and vehicle applications, as well as in expense management tools.
These capabilities include the use of virtual cards, transaction controls, and enhanced data features, which Visa believes could help financial institutions improve their commercial card services and stay competitive in the market.
Partners in the programme have already undergone a review process and are integrated with Visa’s systems, allowing institutions to adopt and deploy these solutions more quickly.
“By leveraging our network and Commercial APIs, we are enabling our partners to innovate faster, reduce development and distribution costs and deliver superior payment experiences to their clients, it underscores Visa’s commitment to driving the future of digital payments and supporting the growth of the fintech ecosystem globally,”
said Darren Parslow, Global Head of Visa Commercial Solutions.
The programme has been developed to operate at a global level, while also taking into account regional requirements.
Visa works with local fintechs and financial institutions to adapt solutions to fit market-specific needs.
The global framework standardises areas such as contracting, technology, security, risk, and data privacy, allowing for smoother implementation across different regions.
Visa has stated that it will continue to focus on innovation in digital payments and encourages fintechs to join the programme, and financial institutions to explore how they can enable business partners and clients to access new payment solutions.
Featured image credit: Visa
