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Small Businesses and their Credit Card Issuances

There are many challenges having to do with small business credit card issuing these days. Small business card issuing is a key strategic segment for credit card issuers seeking to grow payment volume at rates above the overall industry averages, and to also add to their portfolio numbers. The attractiveness of the market to small business credit card issuers is high for a number of reasons, including that the payment volume of small business credit cards is growing at twice the rate of credit cards overall.

Some of the key challenges of serving the small business credit card market include addressing the needs of the surprisingly complex sub-segments within the small business owner market. This market includes "sole proprietors" as well as firms having up to 100 employees. The aforementioned report noted that "The small business segment is dynamic, with new prospects emerging continuously, and businesses growing in their financial needs."

Small business credit card issuers note that these days "There is a major opportunity to leverage existing small business relationships, as well as prospecting within retail consumer credit card portfolios." According to the Mercator Advisory Group, The small business segment may be messy from a segment viewpoint, but tools and techniques available to issuers to address the opportunity are improving."