MasterCard Inc. in Purchase and Citizens Financial Group Inc. have teamed to offer a new technology for businesses to manage and limit employees”™ use of company credit cards.
Officials at Citizens Financial Group headquarters in Providence, R.I., said theirs is the first financial institution in the U.S. to offer the MasterCard inControl technology to small businesses. The service will be available to Citizens”™ commercial card customers. It allows business owners to do the following:
- Set up and manage exactly where, when, how and for what types of purchases their employees”™ cards may be used.
- Set up spend limits and budgets for particular types of spending.
- Establish how and when they receive alerts, via text or email, to safeguard against overspending and keep them informed in real time about attempted card activity.
- Create limited-use, virtual card numbers so that spending controls can be set for individual transactions or recurring use, providing enhanced levels of security and convenience as the business owners real account number is never revealed to the employee or merchant.
“This inaugural implementation of MasterCard inControl for small business cardholders will enable business owners to have greater control and visibility over their card spending than ever before,” Michael Fiore, group head of inControl at MasterCard Worldwide, said in a prepared statement. “The innovative tools and services offered through the MasterCard inControl platform not only empower our business cardholders to feel more confident and in control over their employees”™ spending, but help our card issuers drive customer loyalty and differentiate themselves from the competition.”
MasterCard”™s banking partner in the agreement expects inControl to be available to commercial card customers during the second quarter of 2011.
Citizens Financial Group Inc. is a $130-billion commercial bank holding company with approximately 21,400 employees that is owned by The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc. Through its two bank subsidiaries, the company operates more than 1,500 bank branches in 12 states. In New York and Connecticut, the company”™s retail branch offices operate under the Citizens Bank brand.
