American Express corporate cardholders in the U.S. now can
use the mobile wallet payment solution Apple Pay, the card network announced.
Travelers can use Apple Pay with their corporate cards at
the same 71 merchants and 38 mobile apps as consumers, and more merchant
agreements are on the way. To add a corporate card, users input card details
through the iOS Passbook application on Apple devices like the iPhone 6, Apple
Watch, iPad Air 2 or iPad mini 3.
Clients can request Amex turn the functionality off,
American Express executive vice president of global corporate payments Greg
Keeley said in an email to BTN. Transaction
data, reporting and expense processes will remain the same as for traditional
plastic cards, according to Keeley.
Amex president of global corporate payments Susan Sobbott
told BTN in March that the corporate
card division was “committed to investing in mobile platforms” in preparation
for such platforms reaching broader scale. She also said at the time that Apple
Pay for corporate use was “in
development.”
While the Apple Pay security measures for corporate cards are
identical to those for consumer cards—a Device Account Number is assigned so card
numbers aren't stored on the mobile devices and Apple servers—Keeley said Amex
had to “build the technology platforms to sustain mobile wallets for corporate
cards.”
Apple Pay launched for consumers in the United States in
October 2014 and in the United Kingdom in July but until now has been available
only for consumer cards. Apple Pay since has partnered with 382 United States-based
banks and credit unions and nine banks in the United Kingdom, according to
Apple’s website. Apple Pay is not yet available for corporate cards in the United
Kingdom.
Only a few merchants like JetBlue, Priceline, Starbucks and Uber
directly target business travelers, but Amex could help change that.
“American Express has a very respected presence in the corporate
travel card market, and I have to believe that this will influence merchants’
thinking on enabling Apple Pay,” said First Annapolis Consulting partner Frank
Martien. “They would be one of several examples of a corporate card provider
that’s large enough that this can actually help make the market.”
While the move makes Amex the first card network and issuer
to enable Apple Pay for corporate card use, Google Wallet had been the only
mobile wallet compatible with corporate cards. Other companies have hurried to
launch their own mobile wallets. Android Pay is set to replace
Google Wallet later this year, and Samsung Pay will launch Aug. 20 in Korea
and Sept. 28 in the United States, according to Samsung. Serko
announced plans last year for a travel payment solution using near-field
communication.
Other card networks and issuers have told BTN they’re looking to enable
the solution on the corporate side. While Bank
of America Merrill Lynch said it could enable Apple Pay for corporate use sometime
this year, U.S. Bank's Mary Miklethun said
early 2016 is a more probable goal.
Still, Martien said corporate adoption of mobile wallets will
be gradual, as will be enablement by other card networks and issuers. “The
corporate market is going to be more patient [and have] less impulsive buyers.
They want to make sure it has staying power,” Martien said. “Any new solution
is going to experience some adoption time.”