Shreyansh Singh, an IIT Kanpur alumnus, has eight years of experience in the finance industry. He has spent 5 years at American Express developing mid to long-term strategies for multiple markets including US, Europe and India. Shreyansh currently leads Growth and Strategy initiatives at Pice.
27 Oct 25
8 mins
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What Is a Corporate Credit Card: A Complete Guide for Companies
A corporate credit card is a financial tool issued by companies to employees for managing approved business expenses such as travel, client meetings, and office supplies.
They enable centralised tracking of expenses, allowing businesses to set custom spending limits and monitor transactions in real time.
Businesses can manage cash flow better by consolidating monthly payments and avoiding reimbursement delays.
Many corporate credit cards offer perks such as cashback, travel miles, and discounts, helping companies save more over time.
With features like two-factor authentication, EMV chips, and data encryption, corporate credit cards minimize fraud risks and ensure safer transactions
Did you know that using a corporate credit card helps businesses save a lot? From fraud control and better cash flow to rewards and perks, the benefits are hard to ignore.
No wonder the credit card penetration is increasing in the Indian market with a 20% CAGR in the last five years, as per 2024 data. If you haven’t yet explored corporate credit cards for your business, now is the perfect time to start.
This guide will provide you with all of the necessary information, including what is a corporate credit card, its benefits and more.
What is a Corporate Credit Card?
A corporate credit card refers to a credit card which is issued to the employees of a specific organisation/company/business. It acts as a financial option to cover the expenses of the employees, which the company approves. These business expenses can be anything from travel and supplies to accommodation and client entertainment.
These credit cards are different from personal credit cards. This is because the issuance of personal credit cards happens in the name of a person, whereas the issuance of a corporate credit card happens in the company’s name. This makes the corporate credit card a tactical solution for business expenditure.
How Does a Corporate Credit Card Work?
After knowing what is a corporate credit card, let us go through how it works. The card provider extends a credit line to the business, and then a few select employees get individual cards. Each of these cards has defined usage rules and limits.
There are a few things that are related to the working of a corporate credit card; knowing these can add to a clearer view:
Direct Billing: All expenses of the individual card holders are directly handled by the company cards, which removes the hassle of employee reimbursement requests. This also creates a centralised payment system for the company, through monthly statements.
Issuance and Distribution: To get corporate credit cards, businesses can apply through banks or issuers. Upon request approval, employees receive individual cards.
Set Spending Limits: As for the spending limit, the companies set it for each card as per the employee’s requirement and role. There are also facilities to categorise expenses in some cards, which makes it easier to track costs by department or project.
Tracking and Rewards: The record-keeping of every transaction is also made easier. Moreover, many cards also provide employee benefit rewards like cashback or travel miles, helping in saving money.
Custom Control: Businesses can control how much they want each employee to spend and where they can spend.
Easy Tracking: Tracking of the company’s financial statements becomes easier through credit cards, as all the data can be found in one place, and the data can also be digitised.
Financial Management: With corporate credit cards, spend management becomes easier with reduced paperwork and improved real-time financial control with expense management tools.
Cashflow Management: Better management of cashflow within the company improves its financial health, as with corporate credit cards, the payments can be made once a month.
Employee Convenience: Not going repeatedly to the employer to ask for reimbursement also makes it convenient for the employee to make expenses.
Global Acceptance: Credit cards are accepted all over the globe, making them one of the easiest ways of payment.
6 Factors to Consider Before Applying for a Corporate Credit Card
Before launching a corporate card program, businesses must evaluate their needs and choose a card that aligns with their financial goals.
For instance, a consulting firm, ‘ABC Advisors’, has employees who travel frequently for client meetings. For them, a card offering airline miles and hotel perks creates the most value. On the other hand, a tech startup ‘XYZ Soft’ may have staff spending more on digital tools and subscriptions. In that case, a card with cashback on online card payments proves more useful.
Here are the key factors to weigh:
Costs and Fees: You should review annual charges, interest rates and other hidden costs in the agreement and read the terms and conditions thoroughly.
Credit Limit Flexibility: Make sure that the card accommodates your company’s cash flow and expense patterns.
Rewards and Perks: Always remember to look for programs that offer cashback, travel points or discounts on common card purchases.
Fraud Protection: Go for a card that has strong security features to safeguard against misuse and fraud.
Global Acceptance: If you are a company involved in international work, go for a card that is widely recognised abroad.
Technology and Integration: Lastly, always confirm and check that your IT systems can support expense reporting with reporting tools for tracking and expense management of the card.
Once you decide on your priorities, prepare financial documents and company details for the application process. Remember, each credit card issuer follows its own process of application, so take your time to compare options and ask questions before finalising your choice.
3 Best Practices to Manage a Corporate Credit Card
Set Corporate Credit Card Policies
Set rules such as the use frequency of the card by employees and create a process for qualification for employees to get a corporate credit card.
Regularly Review Expenses
Check the expenses that the employees make regularly. With this, the prevention of any unapproved expense will be possible before it is too late. This will also help you in checking for improvement in expense policies.
Automate Expense Tracking
Automate your expense tracking system and make it real-time. This will help you get notifications about every expense and also automate the approval process.
💡Pay your credit card bills in an easy and secured way with the PICE App.
Credit card fraud can lead to huge financial losses. Recently, a case in Gurugram highlighted how 350 credit card users lost nearly ₹2.6 crore due to a scam in August 2025. Thus, to prevent fraud for your corporate credit cards, you can adopt these security measures:
Two-factor Authentication
This provides an additional security level to online transactions. An OTP approves a verification step. The registered email ID or mobile number receives the OTP.
EMV Chip Technology
The EMV Chip creates a unique, one-time code for each transaction. This adds a layer of security to employee cards at ATMs and secures them from card skimming and counterfeiting.
Data Encryption
Data encryption protects the sensitive information in the card. To have this security, you need to make sure that the issuer of the corporate credit card has proper certification for managing and issuing physical corporate cards.
Transaction Alerts
Have the feature for real-time transaction alerts, which you can receive through emails or SMS. This will allow you to report if any unauthorised transactions take place through the credit card under their name.
8 Top Corporate Credit Cards in 2025 You Can Choose From
The answer to the question, what is a corporate credit card is simple. The issuance of a corporate credit card is done for the employees of a company to make business-related expenses. These cards help the company save a lot through streamlined expense management. If you want to get one, just keep in mind to digitalise your account management system for quick reports and real-time monitoring.
FAQs
What is a corporate credit card and how does it differ from a personal credit card?
A corporate credit card is issued in a company’s name for employees to use for business expenses. Unlike personal credit cards, liability and billing are typically handled by the company.
Who can apply for a corporate credit card?
Corporate credit cards are designed for registered businesses, startups, and organizations that have multiple employees and consistent operational expenses.
How does a corporate credit card help in financial management?
It simplifies expense tracking by providing centralized statements, reducing paperwork, and integrating with digital accounting and expense management tools.
Is there any eligibility requirement for what is a corporate credit card?
Yes. Businesses usually need to provide company registration documents, financial statements, and employee details as part of the application process.
How do I choose the best corporate credit card for my business?
When deciding what is a corporate credit card best suited for your business, evaluate factors such as annual fees, reward programs, global acceptance, credit limit flexibility, and technology integration.
Shreyansh Singh, an IIT Kanpur alumnus, has eight years of experience in the finance industry. He has spent 5 years at American Express developing mid to long-term strategies for multiple markets including US, Europe and India. Shreyansh currently leads Growth and Strategy initiatives at Pice.
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