How it works
Card issuers generate virtual card numbers on demand. In B2B payments, a buyer can issue a single-use card for the exact amount of a bill, or a card locked to one supplier, and send the details to the supplier to charge. The buyer gets control and often rebates, and the issuer earns interchange, which is why virtual cards drive supplier enablement programs.
Example
A buyer pays a $2,300 software bill with a single-use virtual card capped at that amount. The supplier charges it once and the card cannot be used again.
In integrations
Virtual card programs need to know which suppliers accept card and to record payments back in the buyer's ledger. The Unify Accounting API is designed to provide vendor and AP history for that targeting and to write bill payments back where write-back is confirmed, linked to the right bill and card clearing account. Card acceptance varies by supplier and by industry, so programs need data to target the right suppliers. Recording each card payment correctly in the ledger is what keeps finance teams on board.