A global payments technology company, Mastercard has launched a new programme designed to simplify and scale the adoption of virtual cards across banks, platforms, and corporates.
The move aims to accelerate the use of embedded Virtual Card Number (VCN) technology in commercial payments, according to FF News.
The launch addresses the growing demand for consumer-like payment experiences in corporate environments.
As corporate employees increasingly expect seamless and intuitive payment solutions, Mastercard’s initiative responds by reducing friction in virtual card adoption and integration.
A pioneer in digital payment solutions, Mastercard has spent decades developing its VCN platform.
Through collaborations with enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, working capital providers, and expense and hotel booking platforms, Mastercard has embedded virtual card technology into the core systems corporates already use. This strategy has streamlined how virtual cards are implemented across workflows.
The new programme leverages Mastercard’s latest VCN technology to enable banks and platform-partners to deliver embedded payments experiences.
It allows banks to scale their offerings and tap into more embedded payments opportunities, while platforms can offer integrated payment solutions with minimal technical effort. For end-users, the result is a significantly more efficient and consumer-friendly commercial payments process.
Crucially, the programme removes the need for direct engagement between banks and platform-partners.
This eliminates long onboarding procedures involving contracting and technical vetting, helping to bring solutions to market faster. Now, corporates can access VCN functionality directly within tools they already use—such as their ERP system—streamlining tasks like invoice payments to just a few clicks.
By tackling the fragmented nature of commercial payments, Mastercard is setting a new standard. With this initiative, corporate users benefit from frictionless onboarding and intuitive interfaces, while ecosystem participants unlock greater operational efficiencies.
The programme supports Mastercard’s ambition to serve a serviceable market worth US$80tn, bringing embedded VCN usage to scale.
Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach said, “We’re simplifying access to embedded payments, increasing efficiencies, and removing long-standing barriers between banks and platforms. This is a major step forward for the future of commercial payments.”
