An increase in electronic payment frequency and the prioritization of APIs are among the takeaways of the 2021 B2B Payments Survey, which was conducted recently by Bottomline Technologies and Strategic Treasurer.
The fifth annual survey, which polled more than 340 executives from banks and corporations, found APIs rank above artificial intelligence/machine learning, robotic process automation and blockchain on the list of top priorities for banks. This is being driven by demand from corporate customers who are seeking system integrations and embedded payments experiences.
Close to two out of three companies, 64 per cent, are making the majority of their B2B payments electronically. Security and fraud prevention remain high priorities for respondents, with 70 per cent of banks and 52 per cent of corporates reporting heightened concerns compared to last year.
There are several worries in accounts payable and receivable, with top payable concerns including missing vendor information and timely approval of invoices. No surprise then, that payment timeliness is also an issue for receivables, along with remittance clarity.
Firms are also pursuing new payment solutions which increase their productivity. Those include B2C options, which more than 70 per cent of companies want banks to provide. But those options better be ultra-secure, as more companies are worried about their safety as fraud attempts escalate.
The survey also identified a trend toward single payments solutions, with half of banks saying their clients prefer this and 65 per cent of corporates reporting a preference toward single solutions.
“We’re seeing increasing demand from corporates for more simplified and integrated payments processes and banks are responding to this by doubling down on their investments in APIs,” said Gunita Bindra, vice president of Product Management and Partnerships at Bottomline Technologies. “Single payment solutions will become even more important as competition for ownership of corporate customer relationships continues to mount. Importantly, best in class fraud mitigation and compliance has become a must for AP automation vendors.”
Efficiency continues to be the top driver for payments solutions with 47 per cent of respondents reporting it as the reason to evaluate and implement new payments automation solutions. Specifically, corporate survey respondents identified ACH (61 per cent), virtual cards (28 per cent) and RTP (27 per cent) as the main priorities for payment type growth. This is in addition to an increased interest in B2C payments capabilities. The survey found 74 per cent are asking banks to provide B2C payments solutions.
Amid heightened threats around ransomware and fraud, payments security concerns continue to be top-of-mind for both banks and corporates, with 49 per cent of corporations reporting serious attempts from bad actors.
“While we are continuing to see greater adoption of electronic B2B payments, more work needs to be done,” said Craig Jeffery, founder and managing partner of Strategic Treasurer. “Banks and corporates need to build upon the momentum to continue to improve efficiencies through electronic payment.”