In a new report, Celent Communications analyzes the purchasing card industry for its strengths, weaknesses and future outlook.

Businesses have long used commercial cards to make corporate purchases. Today's card programs allow businesses to tailor their cards to their expenditures and employees' spending habits. Currently, businesses may choose between travel and entertainment (T&E), fleet and small-business cards as well as purchasing cards (p-cards). Although all card types are popular, the popularity of p-cards has grown faster than others.

P-cards enable companies to curb and control employee spending by restricting where and how the cards may be used. As vast amounts have historically been written-off due fraudulent spending by employees, p-cards have the potential to significantly reduce this fraud. In addition, p-cards can deliver detailed transaction data to accounting departments and managers, streamlining invoice reconciliation.

P-cards, which emerged in the US during the early 1990s, have always been promising. However, the industry has faced many hurdles. Companies have struggled to implement successful p-card programs and many p-card transactions have occurred without detailed transaction data. However, in the past couple of years, the industry has made significant headway and technology is evolving to address these issues. Today's p-cards are well poised to capture a significant portion of business-to-business payments. “Many financial institutions are stepping up to bat to help combat the industry’s hurdles. Their initiatives will significantly drive the purchasing card market,” commented Ariana-Michele Moore, author of the report.

In this report, Celent Communications surveys the US p-card market, analyzes the market players, and discusses the market's present challenges and potential for future growth.