Network International Launches Business Payment Solutions in UAE with Mastercard

Network International (Network), the leading enabler of digital commerce across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, has announced the introduction of new Business Payment Solutions for businesses, corporations, and travel industry companies in the UAE.

Launched in partnership with Mastercard, the new solutions will enable Network International to tap into Mastercard’s global digital payment expertise including card offerings, expense management and virtual card innovations; enabling Network International’s commercial clients in UAE to digitise business expenses, streamline company payables and receivables processes, enhance payment security, and improve cash flow.

The digital commercial payments landscape in the UAE is shifting, with corporate clients looking for ways to improve both payment operations and working capital, accelerating the region’s digital economy ambitions. The new program aims to deliver better visibility and efficiency in commercial payment flows, simplifying transactions across a variety of spend categories ranging from day-to-day expenses and supplier payments, to managing travel expenses and other business-to-business transactions.

We are delighted to achieve yet another milestone in Network’s 30-year journey of creating world-class digital payments infrastructure and services for clients in the UAE and the wider region. By launching the new Business Payment Solutions for the first time, Network aims to unlock further growth opportunities for businesses and corporations in the UAE. By making progressive inroads into digitisation of commercial payments, Network continues to contribute towards the UAE’s aspirations for a cashless economy.

Nandan Mer, Group CEO, Network International

At Mastercard, we are committed to removing fragmentation and complexity from commercial payments, and we are delighted to strengthen our long-standing collaboration with Network to support commercial customers in the UAE. Building on our shared commitment to driving digitisation and innovation, we are embedding Mastercard’s digital payment expertise, expense management and card technologies into the new Commercial Card Program. By combining our capabilities and reach, more companies across UAE will be able to pay and get paid quickly and securely, boosting liquidity and removing friction from the system.

J.K. Khalil, Division President, East Arabia, Mastercard

As part of the Program, Network will offer a range of business payment solutions targeted at merchants and general businesses in the UAE with a variety of applications and use cases:

• The Corporate Executive Card will provide businesses of all sizes with a range of benefits and robust controls for expense management.
• The Incontrol Digital Business Payments virtual card for domestic and cross-border payments will offer the first-ever net-zero foreign transactions in the UAE.
• Meanwhile, the Mastercard Wholesale Program Digital Travel Payments,will help travel industry customers secure, streamline, and automate B2B travel payment transactions.

The solution is designed to reduce the costs for travel businesses payments through an innovative pricing model and efficiency through Mastercard’s virtual card technology.

The landmark announcement follows the recent approval of Network’s Stored Value Facility (SVF) license by the Central Bank of the UAE. In addition to its Business Payment Solutions, as an SVF licensee, Network will enable its partners and customers to support prepaid card issuing and wallet provisioning, among other capabilities.