American Express, SAP Team Up For Invoice Automation

American Express (NYSE:AXP) and SAP Concur announced on Wednesday (July 8) two new offerings integrating services, the latest in a long series of collaborations between the companies.

Both offerings, American Express said in its announcement, will “help businesses streamline and automate their invoicing and expense management processes.”

The first new offering integrates American Express business or corporate cards with the SAP Concur Invoice product, which is designed to help companies automate invoice processing operations. Employees will be able to pay company invoices using American Express cards from within Concur Invoice. The offering “reduces processing times and allows for greater control and visibility,” American Express said in its statement.

Fraud should be reduced because each transaction gets its own single-use virtual card number, American Express said in its statement. Overall, the company noted, paying invoices will be simpler.

The second offering integrates American Express business cards with SAP’s Concur Expense product. American Express said the pairing creates “a more efficient way for employees to manage and streamline expenses.”

“Operating a business is always challenging, and it is especially so in today’s highly uncertain economic environment,” said Trina Dutta, American Express vice president/group manager of B2B payments automation, global commercial services at American Express. “American Express knows businesses are pressed for time and looking for ways to operate digitally, and our offerings with SAP Concur will help businesses operate more efficiently.”

SAP Concur is a Bellevue, Washington-based unit of the German enterprise software giant SAP. SAP acquired the company, then known as Concur, in 2015.

Also on Wednesday (July 8), American Express announced an increase in its digital checkout offerings. And late last month, the company announced a cash-back program touted as a way to encourage customers to spend money at small businesses.