The Next Big Thing in Corporate Travel Expense Management – Virtual Card Accounts

Implementing virtual card accounts in your corporate travel process can offer better travel data collection, prevent fraud, and improve your existing expense management processes. In the world of corporate travel and expense reports, it’s the next big thing.

Today, many businesses have employees book travel through a central account. Using a central or ‘ghost’ account can be problematic, since detailed data on individual transactions might be difficult to capture and report. Using individual virtual account numbers for each travel transaction – flight, hotel, and car rental – allows a company to gain more insight and report at a more granular individual transaction level.

Individual virtual account numbers can include controls based on frequency of use or dollar amounts.  Merchants or merchant categories can also be limited. Compared to a traditional corporate card, a virtual account offers more protection against fraud and theft.

Implementing and aligning with existing expense processes and software should be carefully planned and tested to avoid unforeseen technology or process issues. Consider initially piloting virtual card accounts with a small department or group of regular travelers to work out kinks and gain quick insights from employees that will be regularly using this new technology. Once you have worked through glitches and smoothed out the overall process, you can roll out virtual card accounts more broadly.

Does your company use virtual card accounts? Let us know the benefits you have seen through having your employees use virtual card accounts as opposed to central accounts.