Table of Contents
Challenges and Room for Improvement
Businesses Want Merchant acceptance, Security, Integration, and Control
Some Key Highlights on Virtual and Physical Cards Adoption in Nigeria
- High Awareness and Adoption Rates: An impressive 76% of respondents were aware of corporate cards, with 62% of businesses already using them.
- Positive Impact on Business Operations: 88.71% of users reported a significant positive impact on their operations and financial management.
- Challenges and Opportunities: The survey highlighted key areas for improvement, such as merchant acceptance (56.45% of users faced issues), the need for better security (37.10% of respondents), smoother integration with accounting software (35.48%), and more granular spending controls (24.19%).
“Our report uncovers the major events and trends around corporate card adoption in Nigeria. This report also analyses the impact of card payments with insights from industry experts. Altogether, you get a sense of business payments in Nigeria within the period of review”
—Okiemute Avworhokai, CEO Miden
Demographic Overview
The survey captured a diverse range of perspectives, with respondents primarily falling within the 30-44 age bracket (60%), followed by those aged 45-59 (20%).
The gender distribution skewed slightly towards males (62%), offering a balanced view of corporate card usage across genders.
Industry Representation
The survey revealed a strong representation from the technology sector, accounting for 30% of respondents. This suggests that tech companies in Nigeria are at the forefront of adopting innovative financial solutions.
The services sector (23%) and manufacturing (13%) also showed significant participation, indicating a growing interest in corporate cards across diverse industries.
Awareness and Adoption
An impressive 76% of respondents were aware of corporate cards for businesses. This high level of awareness has translated into substantial adoption, with 62% of businesses surveyed already using corporate cards.
Among those using corporate cards, a majority (51.61%) have embraced both physical and virtual cards, highlighting a trend towards flexible payment solutions that cater to various business needs.
The Impact of Corporate Cards
The adoption of corporate cards has been overwhelmingly positive for Nigerian businesses. A staggering 88.71% of users reported a significant positive impact on their operations and financial management.
While the remaining 11.29% noted a moderate positive impact.
Key Benefits
Respondents highlighted the following key benefits:
1. Increased Efficiency
More than half of the corporate card users (54.84% of respondents) surveyed identified increased efficiency as a key benefit.
This includes:
- Faster transaction processing times
- Reduced paperwork and manual data entry
- Simplified expense reporting and reconciliation
- Quicker reimbursement processes for employees
- More time for staff to focus on core business activities
2. Better Visibility and Tracking
Over a third of respondents (35.48% of respondents)noted improved visibility and tracking as a significant advantage.
Businesses and customers globally want their corporate cards to enable features like:
- Real-time tracking of expenses
- Detailed transaction records for easier auditing
- Enhanced ability to monitor and control departmental spending
- Improved forecasting and budgeting capabilities
- Better detection and prevention of fraudulent activities.
3. Improved Security
An equal proportion of respondents (35.48% respondents) highlighted improved security as a key benefit.
Corporate cards, especially virtual cards, reduce the need for employees to carry cash or use personal cards. They also have enhanced fraud protection measures compared to traditional payment methods.
Some of these measures include the ability to quickly freeze or cancel cards if lost or stolen.
“Considering the volume of transactions businesses do daily, security is not a feature to take lightly.
At Miden, security is at the top of the list. We have several measures to ensure transaction security. A top way is to log user activities within the application, particularly when they access or modify sensitive data.
Comprehensive logging helps us detect suspicious actions and investigate potential security breaches.”. —Ini Udo, CTO and cofounder
4. Better Cash Flow Management
When asked why their business uses corporate cards, over half (53.23%) of respondents cited better cash flow management.
This is a no brainer because better cash flow management has a number of benefits including Reduced reliance on short-term loans or credit lines and simplified reconciliation of business expenses.
5. Enhanced Spending Controls
A smaller but significant portion of people (11.29% of respondents) mentioned enhanced spending controls as a reason for corporate card adoption.
Key aspects of spending controlled desired by businesses include the:
- Ability to set individual spending limits for employees
- Option to restrict card usage to specific merchant categories
- Improved policy enforcement for business expenses
- Reduced risk of unauthorized purchases
The high percentages of respondents identifying these advantages indicate that corporate cards are addressing critical needs in areas such as efficiency, financial visibility, security, and cash flow management.
As evidenced by the overwhelmingly positive reception (100% of users reporting either significant or moderate positive impact), corporate cards are proving to be a valuable tool for Nigerian businesses across various industries.
Challenges and Room for Improvement
Businesses Want Merchant acceptance, Security, Integration, and Control
- The survey revealed a clear thirst among businesses for four key features in their corporate cards: merchant acceptance, enhanced security, effortless integration, and tighter spending controls
- Despite the positive impact, 56.45% of corporate card users faced merchant acceptance problems, indicating a need for wider adoption and infrastructure development in the Nigerian market.
- Security was next on the list, with a whopping 37.10% of respondents yearning for stronger safeguards. Businesses crave a more secure perimeter to keep financial predators at bay.
- Close behind, at 35.48%, was the desire for a smoother connection between corporate cards and accounting software.
- Finally, 24.19% of respondents craved a tighter grip on the purse strings – more granular spending controls.
Future Outlook
Strong demand for corporate cards exists in Nigeria – 73% of businesses surveyed want to issue them. This, combined with positive experiences from current users, points to a booming future for corporate card solutions.
It’s more than just a trend. Corporate cards are transforming business finance in Nigeria. Fueled by high satisfaction and proven benefits, they're becoming essential tools for businesses.
About Miden
Miden is a b2b payment infrastructure and banking stack platform. Miden was founded to make financial inclusion a reality in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Miden aim is to help businesses on the continent, enter the market faster, reduce costs and Increase stability. Miden does this by providing easy-to-use payment solutions through our intuitive APIs.
Methodology
To gather comprehensive insights for this report, we conducted a survey targeting both employees and business owners across various industries in Nigeria. The survey consisted of a total of 100 respondents. To ensure the relevance and accuracy of the data collected, we employed branch logic within the survey. This technique allowed us to direct respondents to specific questions based on their previous answers, thereby tailoring the survey experience to each participant's context and ensuring that the data collected was pertinent to the topic of corporate card adoption.
The survey was administered online. To maintain a balanced representation, we targeted individuals from a range of industries, including technology, services, and manufacturing. The survey was designed to be anonymous, encouraging honest and candid feedback from participants.
Credits
Okiemute Avworhokai (Executive Producer)
Okiemute is the CEO and co-founder at Miden. He brings more than a decade of experience in managing financial institutions within commercial banking and the fintech sector.
Ini Udoh (Executive Producer)
Ini is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Miden. He has over 12 years of experience in the banking and fintech sectors.
Isioma Ogwuda (Author and Producer)
Isioma leads brand and marketing at Miden. She has extensive experience across MarTech, consumer and Fintech industries.
