But this transition has been both a long time coming and surprisingly resistant to full adoption. Despite widespread awareness of the benefits of digital payment systems, particularly virtual cards, many companies remain stuck in legacy processes.
The reason? Until recently, much of the innovation has focused primarily on the buyer’s needs, resulting in advances geared toward reducing costs, increasing control and speeding up reconciliation.
Suppliers, often smaller businesses with limited bandwidth and less technical support, have traditionally borne the brunt of the transformation. Today, that imbalance is shifting.
“It’s no longer a buyer-only world,” Eric Frankovic, president of corporate payments at WEX, told PYMNTS. “We have to tune what we do to make sure that we’re balancing the value between buyers and suppliers so both sides are benefiting.”
That value balancing act is central to what Frankovic calls a new payments ecosystem, one where mutual benefit is not just expected but required for adoption. Virtual cards, while secure, fast and rich in data, can also come with fees for suppliers. Without clear advantages in return, that trade-off has slowed adoption.
“The primary reluctancy,” he said, “is if you are inserting a virtual card, you’re not giving me any other value as a supplier, and you simply are adding costs to my business.”
Strategic Supplier Enablement
So how do payment providers overcome that resistance? According to Frankovic, it starts with reframing the conversation.
“It really has to be a three-way conversation between the buyer, supplier, and then the payments company that sits in between,” he said.
WEX has built its strategy on facilitating these conversations — not only matching the right benefits to each side, but in many cases mediating the trade-offs. In practice, this might look like offering faster or more reliable payments in exchange for card acceptance, or bundling richer remittance data that reduces back-office workload for the supplier.
One of the key insights from WEX’s own research is the importance of consistency in B2B relationships, especially when it comes to payment terms.
“If I have a supplier and they’re used to getting paid in 30 days, we have to maintain that,” Frankovic said. “And once you have that consistency … you can start to introduce shortening that.”
Some WEX clients have taken this even further, introducing dynamic discounting models: “I’ll pay you in 15 days, but we’re going to use a dynamic discounting mechanism,” Frankovic offered as an example.
Of course, complexity looms large for small and mid-sized suppliers, many of whom worry about system compatibility, portals, and reconciling new formats.
“It’s even more critical to have a payment provider that knows something about both issuing and being an ally to the customer, the buyer,” Frankovic said. “As well as a payment company that has supplier tools.”
WEX’s dual-sided model, supporting both buyers and suppliers, has helped them mitigate these concerns with tools that simplify onboarding and reduce friction.
Power of Checks and Fighting Back
If there’s a single takeaway from Frankovic’s vision, it’s that the future of B2B payments lies not in the novelty of technology but in the maturity of relationships. Virtual cards are not a one-size-fits-all fix. They’re a strategic tool, and one that only delivers full value when both sides of the transaction feel empowered.
“People are core to all of this working,” Frankovic said. “The people you do have working on these relationships, they have to be industry experts. They have to know the various competitors that are out there and the options that the buyers and the suppliers have for processing these payments.”
“You need experts, ongoing engagement, and a shared understanding of the value on both sides,” he added.
Still, despite the high awareness of virtual card options in B2B payments — WEX reports 94% awareness — many businesses still rely heavily on checks. That inertia, Frankovic admits, is stubborn.
“I won’t pretend to know [how to get rid of checks] because if I knew I would’ve solved this a long time ago,” he said. “I think it’s just a reluctance to change and a fear of the unknown.”
For B2B organizations contemplating their next move in payments, Frankovic offers a clear, pragmatic recommendation:
“Take the first step. Look for a provider that’s willing to iterate with you. … Bring in a provider, have them work with 10 or 15 of your suppliers, understand how that impacts your systems, your AP department. See what benefits you get out of it, and then take the next step,” he said.
That “land and expand” model reduces risk and gives companies a low-stakes entry point into virtual card adoption. And it’s a model designed not just for Fortune 100s but for any business ready to modernize its payment infrastructure.
“There’s no harm in that first step,” Frankovic said. “You can always step it back if it’s not something your organization is ready for.”
And for any organization still shackled by paper checks and outdated systems, the message is clear: The time to take that first step is now.
