Postage Hikes, Delivery Frictions Turn Paper Checks Into B2B Burden

In the hierarchy of business expenses, the cost of a postage stamp rarely registers. Particularly when compared to capital equipment, raw materials or enterprise software.

That could be why, despite advances in electronic transfers, automated clearing house (ACH) systems, and real-time payment networks, as much as 40% of B2B transactions still flow through the mail.

Yet this summer, the price of a first class stamp increased 7.4% to 78 cents, the third increase in just two years. It may not sound like much, but consider a B2B firm mailing out hundreds, even thousands, of checks a month. All of a sudden, that 7.4% increase becomes significant.

And add to that the fact that the delivery time for first class mail has become more opaque and delayed, and the downstream business impact can frequently result in delayed settlements, cash trapped in float, and strained supplier relationships.

Firms are doing the math: While a check may appear inexpensive on its face, the fully loaded cost of issuing and processing one is considerably higher. And while enterprise inertia has been the most powerful ally of paper checks, rising fraud and broader pressures on corporate finance have pushed the economics of paper-based payments into sharp relief.

Read more: B2B Firms Are Betting on Time to Cash to Manage Uncertainty

Operational Risk Becomes Strategic Risk

In the year 2025, against a dynamic macro backdrop, paper-based B2B payments are no longer just inefficient but strategically risky.

The August 2025 report, “Fact vs. Fiction in Real-Time Payments Fraud,” published by PYMNTS Intelligence and The Clearing House, found that paper checks are one of the most exposed instruments to financial crime, with 63% of firms reporting check fraud.

At the same time, relying on legacy methods is leaving firms stuck in the dust as their peers accelerate innovation initiatives around artificial intelligence and back-office automation.

“It would be like saying, hey, is having GPS a nice to have, or is it essential? Most people would say today it’s essential. Sure, you could go back to having a map, but why, when you’ve got all these nice tools available?” Chris Wyatt, chief strategy officer at Finexio, told PYMNTS. “Think about those manual repetitive tasks that are expensive for your team. Ideally, it’s probably not what you hired your team to do.”

According to “Virtual Mobility: How Mobile Virtual Cards Elevate B2B Payments,” done in collaboration with WEX, almost 73% of businesses have yet to automate supplier payments, significantly limiting their ability to gain a comprehensive view of money movement.

By contrast, companies that invest in digital payment systems can differentiate themselves. Faster settlement supports supplier stability, strengthens ecosystems, and enables collaborative financing arrangements. In effect, payments are shifting from back-office tasks to strategic levers of competitiveness.

Findings in “The 2024-2025 Growth Corporates Working Capital Index,” a PYMNTS Intelligence report commissioned by Visa, reveal that the integration of suppliers through digital means, as their billing systems are linked to the buyers’ payment operations, can improve cash flow for both parties, and by extension, create B2B ecosystems that are efficient.

Read more: Picking the Optimal Payment Mix for B2B Growth

Expectations and Needs Shift

While paper checks once allowed buyers to control float, or the time between issuing payment and funds clearing, the value of that float is eroding. Suppliers that wait days or weeks to receive funds may downgrade those customers in allocation decisions, especially in constrained supply environments. Faster-paying buyers can gain access to priority inventory, favorable contract terms, or simply stronger relationships.

Similarly, CFOs traditionally justified paper checks as a tool for managing working capital. By delaying funds leaving the bank account, businesses could eke out additional days of liquidity. But electronic alternatives now offer more precise, and often more valuable, ways to optimize capital.

Automated systems enable dynamic discounting, where suppliers accept early payment in exchange for modest reductions in invoice totals. Common structures such as “2/10 net 30” give buyers a 2% discount for paying within 10 days rather than 30. On a large spend base, this adds up to big savings, far outweighing the marginal benefits of holding float for a few extra days.

At the same time, digital payments provide clearer visibility into outflows, improving forecasting and enabling more proactive cash deployment strategies.

Still, paper checks are unlikely to disappear overnight. Cultural inertia, smaller supplier preferences, and uneven access to digital infrastructure will keep them in circulation for years. But their position has fundamentally shifted. What was once seen as the safe, default option is now the most expensive and operationally risky.

The broader context is a transformation in how businesses view payments. No longer mere administrative settlements, they are emerging as tools of strategic advantage.