Corporate cards

Everything about virtual prepaid cards in Singapore

Apr 05, 2024

With digital payments on the rise, you want to be sure that your business is adapting to them. One great way to manage your expenses and easily make payments digitally is by using virtual prepaid cards. 


Creating an unlimited number of these virtual cards is quick and hassle-free, meaning that you can assign specific cards to employees, projects, or even vendors. Tracking your expenses is easier this way. Virtual prepaid cards also allow you to control how much money is being spent by loading your cards with the exact budget you wish to spend. 


Know how to get virtual prepaid card in Singapore and start using them for your business expense management.

What is a virtual prepaid card?


Virtual prepaid cards function similarly to their physical counterparts. In general, a prepaid card is a card that needs to be loaded with some funds before it can be used.


Once you’ve spent the funds that you loaded into your card, you won’t be able to spend anymore unless you top it up again. The only difference between a physical and a virtual prepaid card is that your virtual one will only exist digitally.

How do virtual prepaid cards work?


Each virtual prepaid card will have its own 16-digit card number, expiry date, and security code. To use your virtual prepaid cards, you’ll have to go into your virtual card dashboard to load them with funds from a bank account. Then, to make a vendor payment, all you need to do is enter your card details in the appropriate app or website.


Considering that a virtual prepaid card will not have a physical and tangible form, it would typically be best used for online purchases. In the same vein, the lack of physical form allows you not to have to worry about misplacing your card.

Benefits of virtual prepaid cards for businesses



1. Increased security


While you will need to load your virtual prepaid cards with funds from your bank account, they won’t be directly tied to your account.


This way, you can ensure your bank account, credit, and debit card details are all secure and kept private. You also won’t run into the risk of losing physical cards.


2. Flexibility and convenience


You’ll want to know how to get virtual prepaid card because of how convenient they are to use. If your business makes a lot of online purchases, virtual cards are perfect as you can access them from anywhere.


Generate as many virtual cards as you need, load them up with funds, and efficiently make payments.


3. Increased spend control


Since you can only use your virtual prepaid card according to the amount of money that you’ve loaded into it, this makes controlling your business spending easier.


Give each card a budget and load that exact budget into the card. This way, you can ensure that employees can’t spend above the given limit.


4. Streamlined expense management


You don’t need to worry about untracked payments and inaccurate expense reporting. When you use a card dashboard, you can centralize your expense management.


Having multiple virtual prepaid cards that each have a specific purpose also means that all your expenses are segregated, making it easy to view how much you’ve spent on what.


5. Greater transparency


With the help of a card dashboard, you can monitor all your card spending easily.


Every time you or your employees use a corporate virtual prepaid card to make business expenses, the transactions will be automatically reflected on your dashboard. You’ll know how, when, and where every penny is used in your business.


6. Promotes better supplier relationships


Vendors and suppliers are not fond of customers who continuously make late payments or aren’t on top of their invoices. For that reason, you want to make sure that you’re always paying vendors on time.


Luckily, using vendor-specific virtual prepaid cards can help you achieve faster payments and better vendor management.


7. Efficient and faster payment method


Compared to cash or even physical cards, virtual cards are generally a faster payment method.


You won’t run into the risk of forgetting where you kept your card, making it very easy to make online virtual payments quickly when you need to.


Plus, topping up a virtual prepaid card takes no time at all.



8. No credit check required


Applying for a virtual prepaid card is much easier than a credit card.


Since you’re using your own funds to top up your virtual prepaid cards, you don’t need to go through a credit check.


Businesses that are just starting out and don’t have a credit history yet can utilize them.


9. Improved record keeping


As virtual prepaid cards are digital, you’ll have a record of all your transactions without worrying about paper receipts.


With a card dashboard, you can get a centralized platform where all your records can be accessed without having to comb through file cabinets. It’s less manual work for better results.


10. Easy to obtain


With no credit check required and no waiting time for your card mail to come, getting virtual prepaid cards is extremely easy.


Not only is the application time short, but you also can start generating and using your virtual prepaid card immediately. Create a card with just a few clicks.


11. Sustainability


In an era where it’s essential to be conscious about sustainability, virtual prepaid cards are a great choice. Your cards won’t waste any plastic since they don’t have a physical form.


More importantly, you won’t have to manually make paper records of your transactions and can instead store them digitally.

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Business use cases of virtual prepaid cards



1. Employee expense management


Every transaction made on your virtual prepaid cards will be automatically recorded on your card management system in real-time. This means that every employee expense will be easy to track, allowing you to make day-to-day employee expense management simple.


Eliminate manual expense reporting while still maintaining a high level of control.


Read our article on expense management automation to the know the process of implementing automation in your organization.



2. Business travel and entertainment expenses


Making business travel and entertainment expenses doesn’t have to be hard. Once you know how to get virtual prepaid card, you can use your cards to simplify your T&E expense processes.


Making travel bookings and sending gift cards to customers can be fast, easy, and secure. Employees also won’t have to file tedious reimbursement claims.



Check out how Volopay and TruTrip’s strategic partnership is helping organizations streamline their corporate travel and expense management process.



3. Vendor payments


You can use virtual prepaid cards to make vendor payments digitally. If a vendor accepts card payments, —many vendors will in the modern digital era—you can easily create a virtual prepaid card for that specific vendor, load your card according to the amount that must be paid, and make the payment quickly and hassle-free.



4. Cross-border transactions


While cross-border transactions using bank transfers can be tedious and time-consuming, the same isn’t true for card transactions.


All you need to do is enter your card details and the payment will be instantly made. If you do a lot of business internationally, virtual prepaid cards are a good way to use your currency to make cross-border transactions.



5. Subscription payments


Managing your subscriptions by creating a specific virtual card for every subscription can save you time and money.


You won’t lose track of which subscriptions are still active since you have a card for each one. Since you’ll have to load your prepaid cards, you also won’t end up overpaying your subscriptions and can stop them at any time.


6. Project expenses


The ability to create, limit, and stop virtual prepaid cards in just a few clicks makes them a great solution for managing project expenses.


You can generate project-specific cards and provide the project team with a secure payment method for all project-related expenses.


Once the project is over, you can simply stop using the card.


7. Rewards and incentives


Since generating virtual prepaid cards is easy and they’re not tied to a bank account, you can create cards as rewards or incentives.


If you’d like to reward an employee, it’s possible to create and load up a virtual prepaid card with some funds that they can use. You can also incentivize customers in the same way.

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How to get virtual prepaid card in Singapore


Getting started with virtual prepaid cards in Singapore is relatively straightforward and similar to other card processes. However, there are some things that you need to pay attention to in order to get the best one for your business.


Before you start applying for cards, you must research different card providers in Singapore. Not all card providers will offer virtual prepaid cards, so be sure that you put in your research and pick providers who can accommodate you. Then you want to check your eligibility with your chosen provider and have everything they require for your application.


Once you’re sure of the preparation stage, you can start your application to create your account, which includes submitting all the necessary documents for verification. After that, it’s a matter of generating your cards and loading them with funds. You can get them activated immediately through a card management system and start using them.

4 Best virtual prepaid card providers in Singapore



1. Volopay


As an all-in-one finance control center for businesses, you can create an unlimited number of virtual cards with Volopay.


Link your cards with a dashboard where you can view, track, and manage all your expenses. You can also easily load your cards using a business account through your dashboard.


2. Aspire


Like Volopay, Aspire is one of the many fintech companies in Singapore that offer tools to manage your business finances.


If your business has an Aspire account, for example, you can generate virtual debit cards that function similarly to prepaid cards. These cards can be used for a variety of online transactions.


3. DBS


DBS is a well-known and trustworthy banking institution in Singapore with a large selection of commercial cards to use for your business.


You can choose from a credit or prepaid model for your cards depending on what your business needs. It’s also possible to apply for DBS virtual cards specifically if you wish to.


4. Wise


Known as a platform that supports convenient and efficient international money transfers, Wise also offers cards for both personal and business Wise users.


You can load up your cards with your Wise balance. However, you’ll have to order a physical card to receive a virtual version along with it.

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Tips for using virtual prepaid cards effectively



1. Set spending limits and track expenses


Try not to overload your virtual prepaid cards with funds. By limiting your card balance, you’ll be automatically setting a spending limit. Tracking and controlling your spending will be much easier.


If an employee needs funds above the pre-authorized amount, they can go through a request workflow to ensure that nobody is overspending.


2. Issue cards for specific purposes


You can generate as many virtual prepaid cards as you wish.


Take advantage of this feature and issue cards for specific purposes such as travel and entertainment, digital marketing ads, subscriptions, different projects, and many more.


You can also have vendor and subscription-specific cards for even better expense management.


For business travel specifically, virtual cards designed for corporate needs can offer a variety of benefits. For a more in-depth look check out our article on the best prepaid travel cards in Singapore.



3. Have a strong expense policy


It’s important that you set a clear distinction between personal and business expenses.


Create a strong expense policy and communicate it with all your employees to ensure that everyone is on the same page.


Make it clear that your corporate virtual cards are only to be used for business spending. 


Refer our article to get a complete idea on how to design an efficient expense reimbursement policy for your employees.


4. Set budgets


Before you load your cards with funds, it’s best that you set a budget for your expenses first. When you have budgets for every specific spend category, department, or project, monitoring your funds and ensuring that there’s no overspending is easier. You’ll also get a better overview of your company funds.


5. Issue cards only when necessary


While you should take advantage of the fact that you can create an unlimited number of virtual prepaid cards, you also want to be mindful of it.


Make sure that each card you create has a purpose and is used for that intended purpose. Issuing cards for employees who don’t need them can cause misuse.


6. Integrate with an accounting software


Take your virtual prepaid cards one step further by integrating your card management system with your accounting software.


Not only will your card transactions be automatically recorded in your card dashboard, but you can also sync up the data with your accounting software to enable easier end-of-month bookkeeping for your accounting team.


7. Monitor employee spending habits


With every card transaction recorded automatically, you should review the transaction data regularly and monitor your employees’ spending habits.


Make sure that all cards are being used appropriately and that employees are spending within the given limit. If there are any suspicious expenses or patterns, make sure that you investigate them.

Why choose Volopay virtual cards for your business?


Make payments easier, faster, and more convenient with Volopay. You can say goodbye to long and tedious manual processes, reimbursement claims, and expense reports. Instead, you get to generate an unlimited amount of virtual cards depending on your business needs and load them with funds easily. Activating them takes just a few clicks.


It takes no time at all to start making payments using Volopay cards. What you get in return is a smooth expense management experience. All your card transactions will automatically be reflected in your system and kept safe at all times. No more worrying about untracked expenses, card misuse, or overspending.

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