# Take charge of payments with Visa virtual cards

Virtual credentials give your business more control, security, efficiency and working capital management — so you can pay suppliers faster, enable employees and unlock new opportunities.

## Increase control, minimize risk

Explore the many benefits that come from choosing to use a virtual card for business payments, like better-informed decision making, stronger vendor relationships and short-term liquidity risk mitigation.

### Enhance security

Protect against compromised data with a virtual card that conceals the underlying business account.

### Improved efficiency

Reduce delays with cards that can be issued immediately, with faster and simpler reconciliation.

### Maximize control

Leverage 45+ payment controls and set payment periods or spending amounts.

### Improve working capital management

Maintain access to working capital with the help of robust data and fast supplier payments.

## Success stories

Learn how virtual payment technology has brought efficiency and savings to companies like yours.

### Float’s virtual Visa cards helped small businesses streamline payments and manage expenses

[Read the Float case study](https://corporate.visa.com/content/dam/VCOM/corporate/resources/documents/float-case-study.pdf)

## Enjoy the benefits of virtual payments

Integrate with existing systems and mobile wallets, with the security technology and controls you expect from Visa.

### Easy integration

Integrates into Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) or Accounts Payable (AP) systems to enable virtual payments.

### Tap into advanced security technology

Review transactions faster to reduce surprise spending, and deactivate quickly to reduce opportunities for misuse.

### Use with mobile wallets

Push virtual cards to mobile wallets, including Apple Pay and Google Pay for a simplified user experience.

## More about Visa virtual cards

### How does a Visa virtual card work?

A virtual card is a digital payment method issued via a website or an app from your financial institution. Companies use virtual cards in a variety of ways, such as paying suppliers, or enabling employees, contractors, and job candidates to pay for expenses through a more secure, easily controlled method.

### Who can use a virtual card?
- **Entrepreneurs** looking to safely make one-time or recurring purchases without worrying about fraud.
- **Small Businesses** wanting a simple way to provide a card to employees or contractors while still maintaining control.
- **Corporations** seeking a more efficient payment and reconciliation process, as well as better cash flow management when paying suppliers.

### How can virtual cards help my business manage travel spend?

Virtual cards help you manage business travel spending by:
- **Reducing fraud risk:** The Visa Virtual card provides the ability to control where, when, for how long and the exact value for which a card can be used, preventing improper use.
- **Making it easy to set and adjust limits:** Set firm controls on spending and have the flexibility to adjust as needed in near real-time, no matter where your employees are traveling.
- **On-demand issuance:** Provide temporary cards with robust controls to employees who have ad-hoc travel expenses or who are infrequent travelers. Instant issuance to digital wallets also allows employees to hit the road and start tapping immediately.
- **Simplifying expense reporting:** Reduce time spent managing expenses by employees when you assign virtual cards to specific trips, making it easier to group expenses and complete expense reports.

### How can a virtual card help my business manage contract workers?

Virtual cards help keep contract workers on task and on budget by:
- **Issuing cards instantly:** Avoid long lead times associated with having a physical card mailed to contract workers by immediately issuing the Visa Virtual card to their mobile wallet.
- **Keeping workers focused:** Widely accepted, quick and secure, the Visa Virtual card lets contractors easily make purchases and get back to the task at hand — helping stay on schedule and on budget.
- **Controlling purchases:** Strict controls eliminate occurrences of unauthorized purchases and the complications associated with them, greatly reducing the risk of fraud.
- **Reconciling easily:** When a job is complete, the card expires and the transactions are directly synced with the company’s accounting software, saving administrative time and costs.

### Can I use a virtual card to make cross-border transactions?

Yes, virtual cards can be used to make international business transactions, and they help simplify the process by:
- **Making payments faster:** Traditional wire transfers are slow, expensive, and lack transparency. Visa’s virtual cards can authorize in near real-time, letting you complete transactions faster.
- **Adding transparency to global payments:** The Visa Virtual cards take the guesswork out of cross-border payments. Virtual cards pay suppliers in their preferred currency and can be single-use, so each virtual card payment corresponds to a specific invoice.
- **Securing your supply chain:** Quick payment using the Visa Virtual card can help in building a strong relationship with suppliers, which can be beneficial for negotiating terms in the future.

### How can virtual cards benefit embedded finance?

Virtual cards help make payments seamless, simple and secure.
- **Increased controls to prevent fraud:** The Visa Virtual card is issued instantly and protects the underlying account. An array of controls, like Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) and amount, is also available. As a result, fraud risk is greatly reduced.
- **Simplified reconciliation:** With embedded finance, invoices and payments are all in one place, making it easy to track purchases and view spend in accounting systems.
- **Working capital extension:** The Visa Virtual card delivers extended Days Payable Outstanding (DPO) for buyers and can reduce Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) for suppliers, enabling better working capital and cash management.
- **Improved processing speed:** Suppliers receive payments faster via straight-through processing (STP). Data-rich transactions reduce reconciliation time. Embedded finance transforms payments for businesses and suppliers alike.

### Can I use a virtual card for fleet and mobility transactions?

Yes, a virtual card can help you manage your company’s fleet and mobility spend in several ways:
- **Get on the road faster:** Instantly issuing the Visa Virtual card gets your drivers on their routes faster, helping generate more revenue.
- **Authorize purchases:** Track and restrict purchases to specific categories or locations to reduce the risk of fraud in your fleet.
- **Gain higher satisfaction:** By catering to small, medium and large business needs, the Visa virtual card can help increase client satisfaction to create longer lasting relationships.
- **Adjust limits easily:** Visa is widely accepted around the globe, allowing fleet managers to easily adjust spending limits for unexpected expenses like emergency vehicle repairs.
- **Utilize the latest technology:** From security measures to ease of use, the Visa Virtual card adds new levels of efficiency and protection to your fleet’s finances.

### Are virtual cards a good way to manage my company’s invoice payments?

Yes, paying invoices with virtual cards is a great option for most businesses.
- **Optimize working capital:** With the Visa virtual card, a company can extend its Days Payables Outstanding (DPO) and reduce supplier Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), improving cash flow, offering strategic investment opportunities and mitigating short-term liquidity risks.
- **Reduce fraud:** The Visa Virtual card greatly reduces fraud risks by incorporating payment controls such as time, amount and Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) to mitigate potential compromise.
- **Pursue investment opportunities:** Reduce the need for high-interest loans by leveraging the working capital benefits of the Visa virtual card to invest in strategic endeavors like buying inventory, facility renovations or business expansion initiatives.
- **Reduce workload:** By seamlessly integrating into a company’s accounting system, the Visa virtual card can help reduce Accounts Payable processing efforts.
- **Improve reconciliation:** Adopting the Visa's Virtual card improves efficiency of paying invoices and reduces associated costs by having single-use payments that match with individual purchases.

### How can virtual cards benefit my small business?

You can use virtual cards to securely streamline the way your business transacts:
- **Optimize cash flow:** Hold onto your cash longer to better manage and retain your company’s valuable cash flow. By using credit for purchases, your business has the entire credit payment period to pay.
- **Better control funds:** Issue a single-use, virtual card to employees as needs arise to reduce the risk of physical cards being misused or misplaced.
- **Reduce admin workload:** Having Visa's virtual cards assigned to specific transactions reduces administrative time for reconciliation. Additionally, eliminate the need for employees to use personal funds to make everyday purchases.
- **Secure purchases:** Get better security for online and in-person transactions with accounts that expire after they are used for a specific purpose or used within a specific time period.
- **Transact where you operate:** Visa's virtual cards seamlessly integrate into accounting software, meaning you and your employees can pay without having to leave your software portal.