Mastercard has added a new Account-to-Account (A2A) service to its Track Business Payment Service, to help businesses exchange data more efficiently and perform payments across multiple rails, a press release says.
With the new addition to Track Business Payment Service, businesses can have greater control over their payments because the A2A service will support rich data exchanges and allow for payments automation without having to share sensitive data information.
According to research from Mastercard, almost 80 percent of mid-size and larger suppliers see risk in sharing bank account data. However, the press release says that risk is cut down because the suppliers do not need to share confidential bank account information with buyers, and buyers don’t need to share such details either.
James Anderson, executive vice president of global commercial and B2B solutions at Mastercard, said the idea was to build a new, secure kind of payment rail.
“Our commitment to supporting multiple payment rails has always been about helping customers operate more efficiently and effectively, leveraging all the capabilities available in the market with as little change as possible,” he said, according to the release. “This milestone is another step in the journey away from paper-based frustration, incomplete data and manual reconciliation work — to a fully-digitized business payments process.”
The A2A features are already available in the U.S. and will be available in all regions by the end of next year, the release says.
The Track Business Payment Service was rolled out in the U.S. in May this year, offering more control over payments and better data exchanges, enhancing consumer payments.
Mastercard said that service allows businesses of all sizes to pay and get paid with card through distribution partners around the world, including bzPay, Gardenia Technologies, Girasol Payment Solutions, Network International, Pendo Technologies Corp., Plastiq, Today Payments Inc., Transcard, Ukheshe and Yak Pay.
Transcard CEO Greg Bloh said combining his firm’s integration platform with the new Mastercard Track Business Payment Service “eliminates friction in B2B payments by digitally connecting buyers and sellers and facilitating touch-free real-time payments and the exchange of rich remittance information directly between trading partner ERPs and banks.”
Mastercard also recently rolled out the Track Card to Account Transfer in the Asia Pacific region, which will help businesses seeking more diverse payment styles. It will let businesses use commercial cards to pay suppliers even when the suppliers don’t take card payments. It will help to boost cash flow, automate payments and reduce the need for manual work.