Business credit cards are a valuable tool for entrepreneurs and business owners. They can help you separate business expenses from personal spending, build business credit, and earn rewards on your purchases.
In this blog, we’ll cover everything you need to know about business credit cards, from how they work to their pros and cons. We’ll also help you decide if a business credit card is right for you and explore how Fyle can simplify business credit card management.
A business credit card is a credit card that’s issued to a business rather than an individual. Like a personal credit card, it allows businesses to purchase and borrow money. Business credit cards come with their own limit, interest rates, and rewards programs.
Using a business credit card is similar to using a personal credit card, but with a few key differences:
Using a business credit card is similar to using a personal credit card. You make purchases with the card, and then you’re responsible for paying back the balance each month. If you don’t pay the balance in full, you’ll be charged interest on the outstanding amount.
Here are some of the key terms you’ll need to be familiar with to understand how business credit cards work:
Did you know?
Apple attempted to launch its own business credit card program with Capital One in the late 1990s, but the project never came to fruition. The Apple card was finally launched in 2019.
Business credit cards are accessible to a wider range of businesses than you might think! Here’s a breakdown of who typically qualifies:
While having a physical storefront or a large team isn't required, a strong personal credit is typically the critical factor in getting approved for a business credit card. Issuers will often look at your personal credit score to assess your creditworthiness.
While good personal credit is crucial, some lenders may also consider your business's income history, especially when applying for cards with high credit limits or premium rewards programs. Established business income can improve your chances of getting approved for the most desirable business credit cards.
Did you know?
According to Forbes Advisor’s 2023 poll, 29% of businesses sought funding via business credit cards in 2022.
You can apply for a business credit card using your business’s Employer Identification Number (EIN) if you have one established. Alternatively, you may be able to use your personal Social Security number. Regardless of which option you choose, the lender will consider all the information on your application to make a decision. They’ll review your business credit report (similar to a personal credit report) to see your past performance with credit.
Did you know?
Nearly 91.4% of those who primarily funded their businesses with business credit cards agree that they’d advise other entrepreneurs to consider this method.
Source: Forbes
There are several advantages to using business credit cards:
There are also some disadvantages to consider:
Whether or not you need a business credit card depends on the size and nature of your business. However, here are ten questions you can ask yourself before you decide where you need a business credit card:
With Fyle, we built a product that explicitly helps businesses simplify their business credit card management. Here’s what we can do:
Business credit cards offer a variety of benefits for businesses of all sizes. They can help you separate your business and personal finance, build business credit, earn rewards, and improve cash flow management.
However, it’s essential to know their potential drawbacks, such as personal liability and high interest rates.
If you decide a business credit card is right for you, Fyle can be an invaluable asset in streamlining your business credit card management process.
Say farewell to the era of mobile expense apps; it's time to embrace a simpler way to manage expenses – through texting.
Over the past three decades, we've witnessed expense management evolve from cumbersome paper-based processes to spreadsheets and finally to the app-centric solutions we've grown accustomed to. But now, we’re gradually witnessing a shift towards AI, with smart computing doing more than just automating tasks. With Fyle’s new Conversational AI, go from “there’s an app for that” to “you don’t need an app for that”. Learn more about this launch here!
Simply capture an image of your receipt and send it our way via text. Fyle's AI will handle the rest – automatically generating an expense, extracting all the important data, coding it according to your GL, and filing it away! Whether it's a credit card receipt or an out-of-pocket one, Fyle's got you covered. No more app downloads required.
The moment your receipt reaches us, Fyle's OCR engine accurately extracts details like Amount, Date, Currency, Merchant, Category, and more, seamlessly mapping them to your Chart of Accounts or GL Codes.
Fyle will prompt your employees to submit other mandatory fields like Projects, Cost Centers and more via text messages, ensuring you don’t need to constantly follow up with them for important information. Configure all the fields you consider necessary or mandatory in the settings, and Fyle will handle the rest. This means your users can not just submit receipt, but complete their entire expense without even using the mobile app!
Fyle facilitates seamless reconciliation between your receipt and credit card expenses, regardless of which comes first. Users can submit receipts for all Visa, Mastercard, and American Express card transactions via text message. We'll make sure they're accurately coded and matched. With real-time and direct card transaction feeds, you can get instant visibility into card spend without even logging into your bank accounts.
Fyle’s policy engine operates in real-time, checking expenses against your business rules before they even land in the approval queue. From spend limits to project-specific guidelines, Fyle ensures compliance every step of the way.
Fyle doesn't stop at automating receipt collection; it streamlines the entire expense reporting process, automating submissions and eliminating the need for constant reminders and verifications.
Fyle is on a mission to ensure your software experience is not just limited to an app, but delivered to you everywhere. Say goodbye to unnecessary mobile apps and hello to expense management with text messages in real-time. Ready to see it in action? Schedule a demo with Fyle today!
Imagine this: you have a business trip coming up to New York City, the most expensive U.S. city for business travelers, with a daily average cost of $541.
But instead of planning the trip, you’re drowning in a sea of flight options, hotel comparisons and car rental quotes.
Enter corporate travel management, your ticket to an easy–boarding pass?
Corporate travel management (CTM) is your one-stop shop for all things business travel. It’s a program that helps companies streamline the entire travel process, from booking flights and hotels to managing expenses and ensuring employee safety.
A corporate travel manager is the mastermind behind your smooth travel experience. They’re experts who design and manage your company’s travel program. They negotiate deals with airlines and hotels (remember, business travelers are highly valuable to airlines!), handle bookings, and provide support to traveling employees.
Absolutely! Here’s why:
CTM programs negotiate corporate rates and track expenses, saving you big bucks. Did you know that while business travelers only make up 12% of airline passengers, they account for 75% of an airline's revenue on some flights?
Corporate travel management programs help you tap into those corporate discounts.
No more endless searches! Employees can book flights, hotels, and car rentals through a user-friendly online platform or app.
Imagine the time saved compared to the pre-internet days, when business travelers took 405 million long-distance trips a year in the U.S., mostly by car for destinations under 250 miles!
Corporate travel management programs prioritise employee safety with features like travel alerts and emergency assistance.
Corporate travel management programs typically charge a small fee based on transaction volume or a retainer model. But guess what? The savings they generate often outweigh the cost.
Let’s break it down with an example:
Scenario: Imagine your company takes 100 business trips per year, costing an average of $2,000 per trip (including flights, hotels, and car rentals). This translates to a total annual travel spend of $200,000 ($2,000/trip * 100 trips).
CTM fee: A CTM program might charge a fee of 2% per transaction. So, for your 100 trips, the CTM fee would be $4,000 ($2,000/trip * 100 trips * 2%).
Savings potential: Here's where CTM programs shine. Through negotiating corporate rates and optimizing travel spend, a CTM program could potentially save your company 10% on travel costs. In this example, that translates to $20,000 in annual savings ($200,000 * 10%).
The math: Even after factoring in the CTM fee, you come out ahead:
Yes, but with a safety net! Most programs allow employees to book within the company's travel policy through the CTM platform. This ensures they get the best rates while adhering to company guidelines.
CTM programs negotiate corporate rates with travel suppliers and track expenses to optimize your budget. Think of it as having a travel connoisseur in your corner!
Business travel can come with risks, especially for international travel which saw a massive decline during COVID (78.8% drop in U.S. business tourist arrivals from overseas in 2020).
An excellent corporate travel management program provides features like real-time traveler tracking, emergency response services, and travel advice to keep your employees safe. Imagine your employees getting stranded due to some outbreak in the future–a CTM program can help locate them and arrange assistance.
CTM programs help ensure employees follow your travel policy and provide clear reports on travel spend, allowing you to identify cost-saving opportunities.
Also Read:
Now that you're armed with this knowledge, you can implement a CTM program and transform your business travel experience. Here are some next steps:
Also Read:
A travel expense management software is the unsung hero of your CTM program. It goes beyond simply tracking receipts–it's a powerful tool that helps you develop, implement, and enforce your travel policy. Here's how:
Corporate Travel Management programs are fantastic, but they're like a luxury car without an engine. They save you money, streamline processes, and prioritize employee safety, but for peak performance, you need a travel and expense management software.
That’s where Fyle comes in. Fyle automates receipt collection, expense report submission, expense reimbursements, enforces travel policies and provides valuable spending insights.
The result? Streamlined processes, optimized costs, and happy employees.
Ready to take your CTM program to the next level? See Fyle in action! Sign up for a demo today and experience the future of business travel.
Juggling business trips can be a nightmare–from booking flights and hotels to managing receipts and keeping track of expenses. But fear not; a whole arsenal of business travel management software exists to streamline this process and make your life easier.
Let’s explore some of the top contenders to help you choose the perfect fit for your company’s needs.
A business travel booking tool goes beyond simply finding flights and hotels. They offer a one-stop shop for booking, managing, and tracking all aspects of your business travel.
Imagine managing every aspect of your business travel in a single, user-friendly platform. That’s the magic of TravelPerk! This all-in-one business travel management solution streamlines your booking process to ensure that everything from flights, trains, and hotels is brought under one dashboard and ensures compliance with your company’s travel policy.
Their handy mobile app keeps you organized and in control, providing real-time flight updates, paperless confirmations of all your bookings, and easy access to your entire itinerary.
TravelPerk also understands that flexibility is key in the business world. That’s why their FlexiPerk feature allows you to cancel trips easily and get 80% of your money back–no questions asked!
Pricing
TravelPerk offers a free "Starter" plan with five monthly bookings, perfect for small businesses or trying out the platform. Paid memberships provide more features and increased booking limits. Here's a quick breakdown:
Did you know TravelPerk integrates directly with Fyle, a travel expense management software? This means:
Airbnb for Work goes beyond traditional hotels, offering a curated selection of unique spaces around the world that cater specifically to business travelers. This platform provides a win-win for both employers and employees. Companies can leverage Airbnb for Work’s suite of tools to streamline booking, manage travel spend, and ensure compliance with company policies.
Employees can access various accommodation options, from modern apartments to charming boutique hotels, all designed to foster productivity and comfort during business trips.
Pricing
TravelBank joins the ranks of business travel management superstars, offering a comprehensive platform to streamline your corporate travel experience. Similar to TravelPerk, TravelBank is a one-stop shop for booking flights, hotels, and ground transportation for your employees. It goes beyond booking though, offering features to manage expenses, enforce travel policy compliance, and prioritize traveler safety–all within a user-friendly platform.
TravelBank boasts seamless integration with various business tools, including Slack, meaning you can book trips or submit expense reports directly from your preferred communication platform. This level of convenience translates to real time-saving benefits.
TravelBank empowers businesses with features like cost-saving tools, streamlined processes for booking and expense management, and clear visibility into travel spend for informed budgeting.
With its feature-rich platform and focus on saving you time, money, and stress, TravelBank is a strong contender worth considering for your business travel management needs.
Pricing
Egencia is a seasoned veteran in the world of business travel management. They offer a comprehensive suite of tools designed to elevate your corporate travel experience far beyond just booking flights, hotels, and ground transportation.
Egencia boasts features like itinerary management, robust reporting for informed decision-making, and duty-of-care services that prioritize traveler safety with features like 24/7 customer support and real-time travel alerts.
Egencia's extensive industry experience and global network of travel providers make it a trusted choice for businesses of all sizes. They understand the importance of traveler well-being and offer features that keep your team informed, supported, and on track throughout their journeys.
Their focus on experience, expertise, and traveler well-being makes them a compelling choice for managing your corporate travel program with confidence.
Pricing
Travel expense reports can be a nightmare for both employees and finance teams. Travel expense management tools streamline the process, ensuring accurate record-keeping, policy compliance, and efficient expense reimbursements. These tools can handle a mix of corporate and business credit cards, cash advances and facilitate compliance with tax regulations. Here are some of our top contenders:
Fyle emerges as a champion in the travel expense management category. This user-friendly platform automates the entire process, transforming tedious data entry and receipt sorting into a breeze.
Fyle accepts receipts through various methods, such as text message, email, or its mobile app. Its intelligent data extraction then automatically creates expense reports, minimizing manual work and saving valuable time for both employees and finance teams.
Designed for seamless integration, Fyle connects with popular accounting software, allowing for effortless expense categorization and streamlined reporting. This eliminates the need for manual data transfer and ensures all your financial data is consistently organized.
Fyle also offers an additional perk: an integration with TravelPerk. This powerful combo allows you to manage both the booking process and all related expenses within a single, unified system.
Fyle effectively streamlines the entire travel expense experience, keeping your team focused on core business activities and free from the burden of manual expense reporting.
Pricing
If you're looking for something that isn't feature-packed like Fyle but can do simple tasks like receipt management, Shoeboxed is a good option. Shoeboxed offers two ways of managing receipts: you can either send them in a prepaid envelope to their processing facility or use its mobile app to scan them.
By using OCR, they can scan and convert the paper receipt into a digital version that is also searchable. This makes tracking and organizing receipts easier. Shoeboxed also integrates with Wave accounting, Xero, FreshBooks, Intuit, and more.
Pricing
Also Read:
Tripit is a travel planner app that consolidates bookings into an itinerary. As soon as you book a flight, hotel, or other travel plan, you need to forward all the confirmation emails to their email. Tripit will automatically create an itinerary you can access while on the go.
Tripit Pro also has a seat and fare tracker that can help you choose the best seats and update you about dropping fares after you book.
Pricing
Google Travel is an aggregate site that consolidates all elements of trip planning into one platform. You can book flights, find a hotel, or check out vacation rentals without switching between multiple sites and tabs.
Input your destination, add your dates, and let Google search for you. It will help you compare dates, set notifications in case of price drops, and even show when it's on or off-season.
The best part is that since all your bookings will be made using your Gmail, everything will be automatically added to your Google account and itinerary.
Booking.com for business is a go-to website for all your business travel bookings and management. You get exclusive business rates, cash in on loyalty points, and 24/7 support from CWT, one of the leading travel management companies.
It's free to use and has over 3 million listed properties across 150,000 destinations.
PackPoint is an easy-to-use app that helps you organize your travel luggage based on the type of visit, the number of days, and the activities planned.
For example, if you're going on a business trip, you can input the location and the number of days, and PackPoint will automatically create a list of things you need to pack to make your travel less stressful. You can also customize the list and share it with others.
PackPoint integrates with TripIt and can auto-create packing lists based on travels you booked using TripIt.
Pricing
The app costs $2.99
Also Read:
These tools address businesses' specific challenges with booking travel and managing travel expenses. However, there's no universal solution. Start by identifying the major bottlenecks in your business travel management process and the essential features you need. Once you have this clarity, review the tools available here to determine which best suits your business. Take advantage of demos, weigh the pros and cons, and select the tool to effectively streamline your travel expense management.
Business trips are vital to the modern professional landscape, but managing travel expenses can feel like a constant battle.
Did you know that the average U.S. business trip in 2023 cost a staggering $1,293, with daily expenses reaching $325? Unsurprisingly, business travel is also the second-largest cost factor for most businesses.
For both employees and employers, streamlining business travel expense management and reimbursements becomes a top priority. This guide will equip you with all the necessary information: what qualifies as a travel expense, what you can claim as tax deductions, and, most importantly, how to manage it efficiently.
Let’s take the stress out of travel expenses and get you back to focusing on what matters most–a successful business trip.
For tax purposes, a travel expense is any cost you incur while traveling for work. This can include transportation, lodging, meals, and incidental costs directly related to your business trip.
The IRS considers a trip a business trip if it takes you away from your tax home or main place of work for business reasons and requires you to sleep over for work purposes.
Tax home: Your tax home isn't where you live with your family but rather the general area where you report to work every day. This applies to your whole city or the surrounding region where your job is located.
Main place of work:
To identify your main work location if you have multiple workplaces, consider these factors:
For more information, refer to IRS Publication 463 (2023), Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses.
Businesses can claim tax deductions when employees travel outside their main place of work. These expenses must be ordinary and necessary to travel away from home for business purposes. You cannot deduct expenses that are lavish, personal, or unrelated to work. Employers can also deduct costs associated with temporary work assignments lasting less than a year.
Here’s a list of deductible business travel expenses while you’re away from home:
You can only claim expenses that are ordinary and necessary for your business trip. This means no personal expenses like buying gifts, extravagant meals, fines incurred, or even expenses made for companions like a friend or family member who might have accompanied you on the trip.
Do you feel like taking your friends or your spouse on a business trip? While you can’t deduct the expenses of bringing your family on the trip, some costs can be offset indirectly.
Carpooling on a business trip
Sharing a hotel room
Great idea! But remember, you can only deduct business travel expenses. This covers getting you to and from your work location, plus any work-related costs while you're there. Personal detours or leisure activities won't count.
Example: Imagine you take a business trip to Seattle from your usual grounds in Chicago. The round-trip mileage for that work travel clocks in at 2,200. But on the way back, you take a quick detour to catch up with your family in Portland. Over your 10-day trip (including the detour), your travel, meals (excluding entertainment), lodging, and other expenses add up to $3,400.
Now, if you'd skipped Portland and flown straight back, the trip would've been 8 days and cost $2,800. The good news? You can still deduct the full $2,800 for your business trip, including the round-trip flights to and from Seattle.
Per-diems simplify expense reimbursements by providing a fixed daily rate for meals and incidental expenses during travel. The rate varies depending on location and reflects typical costs.
Employees don’t need to submit receipts for these covered expenses; they just need to document their travel dates and locations. This saves time but requires setting appropriate per diem rates and ensuring employees understand what’s included.
Also Read
Companies issue corporate credit cards specifically for business travel. Employees use these cards for approved expenses, eliminating the need for upfront personal costs. The company handles the bill directly, and employees submit expense reports for record-keeping. This offers convenience but requires clear spending policies and monitoring.
Sometimes, accurately predicting all business travel expenses upfront can be tricky. Unexpected expenses like laundry, repairs, or tolls can throw off the estimate.
To address this, you can reimburse employees for documented expenses after their trip. Traditionally, this involves manually entering expenses on a spreadsheet and submitting receipts for verification.
But did you know there’s a faster and much easier way to do this?
Travel expense management software like Fyle use Conversational AI, which enables employees to submit receipts via text messages for out-of-pocket and credit card expenses. Expense reports are automatically created by extracting all relevant information from receipts, and card expenses are automatically reconciled with the correct card transaction when the data flows in.
This makes the reimbursement process faster, more efficient, and ultimately more convenient for employees.
This is one of the easiest ways to manage business travel expenses. Invest in a travel expense management software that automates receipt collection, approval workflows, and your expense reimbursement process.
It enables employees to submit receipts on the go and leaves little room for manual errors. Additionally, with real-time compliance, your approvers will know if expenses do not align with company policies and can take necessary action. This saves time and reduces errors for both employees and approvers alike.
Having clear and well-communicated travel policies helps employees understand what expenses are reimbursable and set spending limits. This can include guidelines for meals, accommodation, and incidentals. Specifying preferred vendors or booking platforms can also help control costs.
Do you use an Amex Business Credit Card? With travel expense management software like Fyle, you can create American Express virtual cards on the spot, perfect for one-time or regular costs like meals, travel, or office supplies.
This eliminates the need for physical cards and simplifies expense tracking for traveling employees. Plus, you can monitor spending in real time, giving you greater control over your budget.
Calculating business travel expenses involves two main steps: estimating the costs before the trip and then reconciling the actual expenses after the trip. Here’s a breakdown:
The IRS takes tax compliance seriously, and there can be penalties for claiming non-deductible expenses on your business travel report. Here’s a breakdown of what you might face:
If the IRS discovers you claimed non-deductible expenses, you’ll be responsible for paying back the taxes you avoided plus interest. This interest accrues from the date the tax was originally due.
The penalties you face will depend on whether the mistake was intentional or unintentional.
For more information, please refer to the IRS documentation on penalties.
In some cases, the IRS may require you to file additional forms, such as Form 8275, to disclose the error and potentially avoid penalties.
The Form 8275 lets you explain any deductions you claimed that might not be perfectly clear on your tax return. As long as you had a good reason for claiming the deduction (which wasn't something the IRS specifically disallows), filing Form 8275 can help you avoid owing extra taxes or facing penalties. However, it's important to note that this form won't work if you intentionally tried to mislead the IRS.
For more information, please refer to Instructions for Form 8275 (01/2021)
Fyle streamlines expense reporting from start to finish. Thanks to Conversational AI, you can submit receipts with a simple text message, and Fyle's integrations with Visa, Mastercard, and American Express give you real-time notifications on all card spending while also automatically reconciling credit card transactions.
Fyle goes beyond automation, offering features like business mileage tracking and the ability to issue Amex virtual cards specifically for travel expenses. Plus, real-time compliance checks keep your spending on track. This comprehensive approach helps you identify cost-saving opportunities and ensures your business stays within budget.
See how Fyle transforms your travel expense management. Sign up for a demo today!
This post was originally published in 2020, but the content has been updated for 2024.
Post COVID-19, businesses have seen a massive surge in credit card transactions for incoming and outgoing payments. While this made the payment process easier, it also meant a looming nightmare for finance teams at the end of every month – reconciling credit card expenses.
But where do business owners and finance teams start regarding business credit card management?
This blog discusses everything you need to know about credit card reconciliation, how it works, and why it’s crucial for businesses in 2023. We’ll also address some challenges accounting and finance teams face with reconciliation, after which we’ll give you the easiest way to solve your reconciliation woes. Let’s dive in!
Credit card reconciliation is the process by which accountants ensure that the transactions in a business’s credit card statement match its general ledger. For accurate and efficient financial reporting, companies need to know that these transactions took place and that the expenses on both sides are correct and valid.
If done manually, accountants sit and compare an organization’s credit card statement against its general ledger. If every payment on both sides matches, they can determine that the ledger was recorded correctly and can close books for the month.
However, if there are discrepancies, the responsibility of clarifying these values would fall on the financial controller. They need to find out who made the additional payments manually.
The reconciliation process typically occurs at the end of every month, while a more significant financial closing happens towards the end of each quarter or financial year.
As mentioned earlier, a credit card transaction can impact two sections of your business finance: income and expenses. This means companies will have two types of reconciliations:
This would include all your business expenses – payments your organization makes for goods or services. For example, if your business is habitually issuing cards to its employees, they must be reconciled individually.
This would include all your incoming payments. Reconciling these transactions takes a little more effort than your outgoing payments, but there are defined ways to make this easier.
In this blog, we’ll only be looking in detail at the business expenses side; that is, transactions made by you or your employees to purchase goods or services for your organization.
Making a payment for your credit card statement without a second glance may not be the wisest thing to do. Big financial institutions make mistakes too, and it can end up costing you a lot more than what you should be paying.
The reconciliation process starts when a business receives statements for its expenses. The expense details are then manually matched with the company's internal finance records and checked for discrepancies.
This process ensures:
Reconciliation, as we know, involves the process of matching expenses with your internal finance record. But how do you go about the entire process?
Receipts are proof of expenses. It comes in several forms and helps account for money spent. For example, a purchase made using a credit card comes with an invoice given to the customer at the time of sale. These receipts should be collected from all the cardholders and stored for future reference.
Companies ideally use expense reports to collect and store employee receipts. This can be done manually using paper-based excel sheets and reports or by automation-driven tools like an expense management software.
Finance teams should match credit card statements to reported business expenses with the receipts. Businesses can do this with the help of any preferred system for reconciling.
Pro tip: Ensure that other than fees and interest charges, there shouldn't be any other unmarked items in the credit card statement.
There are always chances of error, either with or without intention. Thus, your finance teams need to be careful in identifying and notifying the bank authorities in cases of mistakes. In addition, ensure timely action by reporting any unauthorized activities or fraudulent behavior.
Some examples of commonly occurring errors with business credit card reconciliations are:
Most companies reconcile credit card expenses with paper-based and spreadsheet-driven methods. Unfortunately, this process is inefficient and forces employees to work long hours of manual labor. This also results in more inefficiencies and loopholes in the process. Given below are some challenges that can hinder your finance team's progress:
For employees, reconciling corporate credit card expenses means entering data without making an error. Even a single missing number or double entry can put the employee's reimbursement on hold. Also, routinely submitting expense reports to get back their own money can affect employee happiness.
For finance teams, inaccuracy and inefficiencies in the credit card reconciliation process make the company vulnerable to financial exposure. Also, the traditional reconciliation methods include a high involvement of employees but do little to remove human-prone errors.
Corporate credit cards have helped revolutionize the speed and efficiency of business payments. But this also implies a high volume of transactions. Moreover, the ever-growing number of transactions increases the chances of missing human errors, duplicate submissions, and inaccurate information.
Your accounting team has to sieve through all the transactions and reconcile one-to-one and one-to-many transactions. This can prove to be a costly and cumbersome expense for your company and employees.
According to a survey by Ernst & Young, financial departments spent up to 59% of their resources on managing transaction-intensive processes. Of this, 95% of the effort goes into already matching transactions rather than ones with entry-related problems.
The traditional approach to credit card reconciliation offers no quick and coherent method to find policy violations. Instead, employees must painstakingly go through every transaction to ensure expenses follow the company's travel and expense policies. This further adds to the delay.
Whenever an employee uses the company's credit card for personal expenses or overspends, there is no way of getting notified unless checked manually. Additionally, a loose policy framework coupled with weak enforcement of T&E policies can misinform employees and cause unauthorized purchases. This also increases the chances of fraud and claims of multiple duplicate expenses.
For employees who use the card for personal expenses, there must be a way to flag violations accurately. For example, when matching the expenses with the bank statements, the finance team has to identify and address personal expenses. While reconciling, finance teams also have to make sure that no errors by vendors or credit card issuers get by.
Just imagine how much easier an accountant’s life would be if these transactions were recorded and matched in real time. Well, here’s what tools like Fyle can help you do:
Also Read:
In today’s world, information is at your fingertips. But when it comes to your business credit card transactions, you’re stuck in the dark. You have to wait days or even weeks to get visibility into where your employees are spending money.
That’s where Fyle comes in. We let you see it all in real-time, from anywhere in the world and it’s changing the way businesses manage and reconcile their credit card expenses. With Fyle, you get real-time insights into your credit card spend so you can make informed decisions about your finances.
Want to see how Fyle can help you? Schedule a demo today!
Did you know that making enough money to finance a business is the most prominent fear entrepreneurs face?
A recent article by Forbes lists the most common fears entrepreneurs associated with running a business. Without financial support, small business owners and entrepreneurs risk falling behind on payments and operating expenses. Hence, this makes for an obvious worry for all small business owners and entrepreneurs.
To help ease out these financial constraints, most small businesses and start-ups are now opting for business credit cards. They offer higher credit limits and reward programs which are available only on these cards.
Business credit cards are the go-to solution for easily accessible funds.
With the multitudes of options available in the market today, choosing the right card may get difficult. It is essential that you pick a credit card that not only meets your business needs but also brings along with it a host of benefits. In this article, we take you through some of the best business credit cards that can help your business scale.
Business credit cards aid long-term financial goals. They are a great financial tool that can fulfill your business needs. They also help you build a long-lasting impression while seeking out long-term solutions for expanding your business.
SUGGESTED READS:
Best practices to manage corporate credit cards
The Chase Ink Business Preferred Credit Cards offer high rewards and amazing travel perks which make up for its $95 annual fee.
The credit card currently offers a welcome bonus of 80,000 ultimate rewards points if you spend $5k in the first 3 months of membership.
Pro-tip:
What is a credit score?
Credit scores are often used by banks or lenders to weigh whether they should issue your business a credit card, a mortgage or a loan. A credit score can affect credit rewards, interest rates, and down payments.
You can measure your credit score using a FICO score ranging between 300-850. A fair credit score falls between 580-669.
Credit score300-579580-669670- 739740-799800-850RatingVery poorFairGoodVery goodExceptional
Most businesses may not have a good credit score. As a result, they may not be able to apply for business credit cards of their choice but instead, apply for credit building cards which allow people with a low credit score or little to no credit history to get credit access. If in fact you have less than the desired credit score, Capital One Spark Classic for Business is also a good choice for you.
Pro-tip:
What is APR?
The Annual Percentage Rate or APR is a term you’ll usually hear when applying for a credit card. APR is the charges that your bank or lender charges for the money you borrow.
0% APR means no interest will be charged on the borrowed money.
The U.S. Bank Business Cash Rewards World Elite MasterCard qualifies as one of the best business credit cards for a 0% introductory APR. For new business owners and entrepreneurs who want financial freedom, this may be the card for you!
The card offers introductory rewards of $500 cashback on spending $4500 within the first 150 days.
Pro-tip:
What are cashback business credit cards?
Cashback business credit cards are among one of the most popular reward cards. They allow the cardholder to earn rewards while making a purchase.
Most cashback cards pay around 1%-2% cashback, with some pay as high as 5%.
For example, if you hold a flat-rate 2% cashback card and spend, $1,000 for a statement period (say one month.) At the end of the month, you would have earned $20 cashback.
The American Express Blue business credit cards are one of the best business credit cards that allow you to make larger purchases while earning cashbacks. These cards are particularly helpful as they help you make purchases above your credit limit.
Pro-tip:
The best business credit cards allow budding start-ups and small businesses to keep more money for their business. They offer lower APRs and rewards that help them save money and aim for scale.
A higher credit score means you qualify for higher rewards. Remember that maintaining your business credit score can help you with future business expansion. This means consistently paying on time and not carrying a balance.
If you’re worried about keeping track of receipts, expenses, and transactions, set up your credit card with an expense management software. This will simplify and automate your workflow process and more.
An expense management software will also help you to track and monitor employee expenses, match expenses, and reduce administrative effort. While you are at it, we suggest you also look out for an expense management software that can cater to all your business needs.
Fyle does much more than just streamlining your business processes. Schedule a demo today and witness Fyle’s magic!
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