New Visa Card Targets EU Business Travelers

Visa has come out with a new business travel card product thanks to a new partnership with travel and expense management service firm HRG, according to Monday (June 8) reports.

The collaboration between Visa and HRG will culminate in the launch of the Central Travel Account Lodge Card solution for European business travelers. The card’s services integrate directly into HRG’s T&E management services, said reports, providing businesses with a deeper level of visibility into their spend management.

According to HRG Group Marketing Director John Harvey, the tie-up with Visa is in response to an increase in demand for tools that more efficiently help businesses manage their cash flow.

“Driven by a need to get total visibility of travel spend, clients are actively seeking simple solutions to this perennial problem of how to pay for travel where the traveler does not have an individual card,” he said in a statement, adding that the solution’s success will depend on “the availability of good quality, reliable and consistent travel data that can be matched to financial data.”

The ability for HRC and Visa’s new Lodge Card to both access and aggregate that data is key to providing a holistic vision of a business’s finances. The tool can also be integrated into companies’ existing Visa Commercial Card programs and services, reports said, as well as into their account management and expense management processes.

Visa’s latest venture in Europe comes as the credit card giant is mulling a possible acquisition of Visa Europe for up to $20 billion, reports said last month. According to Bloomberg reports, unnamed sources said Visa has already approached Visa Europe to discuss a potential buyout, though it was noted that discussions are in their early stages.

Visa split with its Europe unit back in 2007.