Mastercard & Oracle launch virtual card solution for Westpac
Mastercard has announced the launch of a new embedded virtual card payment solution within Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP, with Westpac as the first commercial issuer in Australia to activate the capability for its clients.
The new solution enables businesses to automate manual payment processes by integrating Mastercard's virtual card features directly into Oracle's business-to-business (B2B) technology platform. This approach offers companies real-time visibility into payments, greater control over transactions, improved working capital management, and a streamlined supplier onboarding process, all within their existing enterprise resource planning system.
Removing friction
According to Mastercard, manual commercial payments present several operational challenges for businesses, slowing growth and tying up resources that could be used elsewhere in the organisation.
"Manual commercial payments are the silent drag on growth, slowing operations, increasing exposure, and tying up capital that should be fuelling innovation. By embedding our virtual card technology into enterprise workflows like the Oracle Cloud ERP, we are removing long-standing friction and empowering organizations and businesses across Asia Pacific to operate at the scale and speed of today's economy," said Anouska Ladds, Executive Vice President, Commercial and New Payment Flows, Asia Pacific at Mastercard.
This embedded solution is designed so that clients can use virtual cards without the need for custom integration or additional implementation work, as it is already available through their Oracle Cloud ERP subscription.
Westpac's involvement
Westpac is the first commercial issuer in Australia to deploy the Mastercard virtual card solution for its business and government clients using Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP. The offering is intended to help organisations transition from delayed and resource-heavy manual payments to real-time digital payment flows.
"Helping our customers transition to real-time payments is important to ensure they have the competitive edge in the ever-increasing digitised economy. We're pleased to be providing a simpler way to manage payments, and one that is already built into the systems businesses use every day. We are proud to be the first in Australia offering this virtual card solution that is helping our corporate and government clients manage payments more efficiently," said Jeff Byrne, Managing Director, Global Transaction Services, Westpac Group.
Oracle's perspective
Oracle emphasised the need to bring the convenience and efficiency consumers expect in personal transactions to business-to-business payments, which have often been hampered by legacy processes and technology.
"Consumers have long enjoyed fast, frictionless transactions, but the business-to-business world has lagged behind with outdated, cumbersome processes. Through this collaboration, we're reimagining how businesses transact by empowering mutual customers to streamline cash management, tap into credit, and arrange financing all from one unified platform within Oracle Cloud ERP," said Catherine You, Group Vice President at Oracle. "
Operational benefits
The embedded virtual card system enables businesses to consolidate previously fragmented payment processes into a centralised workflow, supporting efficient financial management. Automated reconciliation of transactions is a key feature, designed to reduce human error and free finance teams from time-consuming manual tasks. The solution also provides detailed remittance data, which can improve transparency and simplify the payment cycle for both customers and suppliers.
Mastercard stated that the collaboration with Oracle is an extension of its global partnership, with a focus on modernising commercial payment systems for businesses around the world.