Mastercard and Octet Europe enable European small businesses to thrive in the global economy

SMEs are an indispensable part of our economy, accounting for two thirds of jobs in most countries and driving greater economic inclusiveness.[1] Expanding international or “cross border” trade is a key driver of many SMEs’ performance and competitiveness. Despite their critical role in the economy, however, small businesses are underrepresented in international trade: only a quarter of European SMEs export.[2] To help these small businesses integrate into the global economy and fulfill their potential, Mastercard and Octet Europe have teamed up to provide a tailored solution.

The Mastercard Trade Solution is directly accessible and encompasses Octet Europe’s state-of-the-art, cloud based B2B trade platform, which thoroughly reviews each company in its network. Specifically, all members transacting on the Octet platform are extensively verified via industry-leading Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC), Counter Terrorism Financing (CTF) and Economic Trade Sanctions (ETS) processes to reduce the risk for all parties in the network. This provides peace of mind for SMEs who want to find new business partners abroad and access foreign markets.

One additional challenge for small businesses’ is access to finance. To overcome this, the new trade solution enables SMEs to use their Mastercard cards as powerful tools to manage their cashflows and pay any suppliers to grow their business, while enjoying their valuable card benefits and reward points. Mastercard Trade Solution and Octet Europe are able to leverage Mastercard for payment services. The platform provides greater flexibility on the preferred payment method for businesses. In practical terms, this means that buyers have the choice to pay by card even if the supplier doesn’t process card payments; meanwhile sellers can accept payments to their bank accounts regardless of how the buyer chooses to pay. This flexibility empowers companies to transact in their preferred way, be it by card or another payment method, thus enabling them to manage their finances more effectively and conveniently.

The tool also helps small business owners manage and simplifying multiple tasks by enabling them to track, validate and authorise every step of a business transaction and settle B2B purchases using cards (debit or credit) with full visibility of all supporting trade documentation.

Milan Gauder, Executive Vice President of Product and Innovation at Mastercard Europe noted: “Small business owners can incur a lot of expenses by running detailed background checks on their supply chain, especially if it involves cross-border suppliers. This in turn can limit their willingness and ability to grow their business internationally. The Mastercard Trade Solution powered by Octet will help the vital SME sector thrive in the global economy by unlocking their potential with flexibility, confidence and peace of mind. At Mastercard, we are committed to remaining the partner of choice for businesses of all sizes and to powering economies.”

Margrith Lutschg-Emmenegger, CEO and Co-Founder Octet Europe noted: “We are excited and delighted to be partnering with Mastercard and see tremendous potential in making our unique product offering available to SMEs across Europe via their powerful partner network. It is an exceptional opportunity to create more usage of corporate cards for procurement and trade, which will greatly support SME’s and their role in sustaining global supply chains.”