Pushpendra Mehta, Executive Writer at CTMfile.com and Host of the OpenTreasury Podcast, interviewed Dean M. Leavitt, Founder & CEO of Boost Payment Solutions, Inc.*

The interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

American Express has partnered with Boost Payment Solutions, aiming to optimize virtual card payments for U.S.-based suppliers. This interview explores the motivations behind the partnership, the advantages of using Boost Intercept®—Boost's patented Straight-Through Processing (STP) solution—to automate virtual card payments, the growing importance of automating virtual card payment processing for suppliers, and more.

Dean M. Leavitt is a well-respected veteran of the electronic payments industry with over 30 years of experience in leadership roles at both public and private companies. Dean founded Boost Payment Solutions in 2009 to meet the untapped needs of the B2B payments industry with patented technology solutions that seamlessly serve the needs of today's commercial trading partners. Today, Boost is widely recognized as the global leader in B2B payments, operating in 180+ countries.

 

Mr. Leavitt, what were the driving factors or motivations behind the collaboration between Boost Payment Solutions and American Express, and what specific goals or objectives does Boost aim to achieve through this partnership?

At Boost Payment Solutions, we’ve always been dedicated to delivering cutting-edge payment solutions that make life easier for businesses on both sides of a payment transaction. The collaboration with American Express came about as part of our shared vision to modernize and optimize the B2B payments arena, specifically addressing some of the persistent challenges suppliers face when processing virtual card payments manually.

Virtual cards, while powerful and secure, often require time-consuming manual entry, which can lead to inefficiencies, data errors, and delayed payments. Our patented Boost Intercept® technology eliminates this burden by automating the entire payment process for U.S. merchants who accept American Express commercial virtual Cards at no additional cost.  This collaboration was driven by the need to simplify, speed up, and secure these transactions, allowing suppliers to focus on growing their business rather than on the mechanics of payment processing. Boost Intercept offers American Express suppliers enhanced efficiency, accelerated payment processing, and an improved experience for customers.

Ultimately, our goal is to enhance operational efficiency for both buyers and suppliers, improve cash flow management, and foster better business relationships by making payments frictionless and faster. By teaming up with American Express, we’re able to extend the benefits of our patented straight-through processing (STP) technology to a broader network, helping more buyers and suppliers streamline their processes and take advantage of the rising tide of virtual card transactions.

Can you elaborate on the benefits that Boost Intercept®, Boost’s patented Straight-Through Processing (STP) solution for virtual card payments, provides to U.S. merchants/suppliers?

We developed Boost Intercept® with a clear goal in mind: to streamline and automate what has historically been a manual and time-consuming process for suppliers. By eliminating the need for suppliers to manually process virtual card payments—like opening emails, copying card details, entering them into their systems, and then manually posting the payments in their ERP or accounting system—we’ve created a fully automated, end-to-end payment solution.

The key advantage here is efficiency. Boost Intercept® automates the entire payment and reconciliation cycle, thereby significantly reducing human error and accelerating payments. This allows suppliers to receive funds faster, improve cash flow and focus their attention on growing their business rather than dealing with administrative work. By automating these manual tasks, finance teams can reclaim valuable time—we have clients that have reported saving thousands of hours annually—which equates to time that can be reinvested into higher-impact, strategic activities. Boost Intercept® ensures that every payment includes detailed transaction data in a format and delivery protocol determined by the supplier, making reconciliation seamless and minimizing discrepancies between payments and invoices.

Security is also a top priority. While virtual cards are already secure, thanks to tokenization and single-use features, Boost Intercept® goes a step further by automating the process and reducing the handling of sensitive payment data, lowering the risk of fraud or breaches.

What are the key differentiators or specific aspects of Boost Intercept® that give it a competitive edge over other commercial virtual card payment processing solutions in the B2B payments arena?

Our technology revolutionizes B2B payments with its fully automated, patented virtual card lockbox solution—an industry first that makes accepting commercial card payments completely effortless for suppliers. Unlike traditional methods, Boost Intercept handles every step for the supplier, from processing to funding and reporting, eliminating manual tasks and streamlining operations. Its flexible platform ensures rapid implementation, accelerating speed to market for all stakeholders while providing unparalleled ease of adoption and scalability to set a new standard in virtual card payment efficiency.

Boost Intercept is built to address the challenges often associated with commercial card acceptance in the B2B space. By optimizing the payment process, our solution helps suppliers deliver significant efficiencies. With a strong emphasis on automation and security, Boost Intercept eliminates exposure to sensitive payment data and minimizes compliance requirements, making it a transformative tool for businesses seeking smarter, more scalable payment solutions.

Mercator Advisory Group (February 2023) estimates that 52% of U.S. commercial card spend will be on virtual cards by 2025. If this is the case, will the increasing volume of virtual card transactions make the automation of virtual card payment processing even more essential for suppliers?

Based on the projection from Mercator Advisory Group and my over 30 years of electronic payments industry experience, the increasing volume of virtual card transactions will absolutely make automating virtual card payment processing more essential for suppliers. The ongoing digital innovations in B2B payments have greatly impacted enterprises of all sizes, making AP and AR technologies more accessible and cost-effective. These advancements have streamlined many aspects of financial operations, but manual processes for payment processing, posting, and reconciliation still present significant roadblocks. This manual handling hinders the full adoption of digital payments and continues to slow the progress of achieving end-to-end automation in business payments.

To overcome these challenges, proprietary technologies that automate these processes are crucial.  With virtual cards potentially accounting for over half of U.S. commercial card spend by 2025, suppliers will be handling a significantly larger number of these transactions and manual processing of this increased volume would be time-consuming and inefficient. Furthermore, virtual cards often come with unique numbers for each transaction, making them even more complex to handle manually compared to traditional credit card payments.

Additionally, automation can reduce  human errors in data entry and reconciliation, which becomes more critical as transaction volumes increase. Boost Intercept® automates and therefore simplifies reconciliation efforts, with detailed transaction data accompanying each payment, making it easier for suppliers to match payments with invoices.

By implementing automated systems, the long-term savings in time and labour costs are likely to outweigh these, especially with higher transaction volumes.

Automated processing can also lead to faster payment reconciliation and posting, improving cash flow management for suppliers and these systems can better handle the security features of virtual cards, reducing the risk of fraud or errors that might occur with manual processing. These systems can also more easily collect and analyse transaction data, providing valuable insights for business decision-making.

With payments fraud and security risks on the rise, is the risk of fraud significantly lower when using Boost Intercept®?

Absolutely. Virtual cards are widely regarded as one of the safest payment methods for B2B transactions. Unlike traditional payment methods such as checks, wires or ACH, virtual cards generate unique, one-time-use card numbers, significantly reducing the likelihood of fraud and unauthorized access to sensitive payment information. This added layer of security, combined with Boost Intercept’s STP technology, keeps sensitive card data entirely out of your environment, making it harder for bad actors to exploit. Plus, the digital trail created by virtual card transactions makes it easier to track and monitor suspicious activities, providing a much stronger defence against fraud compared to more vulnerable traditional payment methods. Additionally, all of the payments processed through Boost Intercept are buyer-initiated, which means they are pre-authorized by the buyer so you don’t have the risk of fraudulent payment requests.

Is there any other aspect of the collaboration with American Express, Boost Intercept®, or the adoption of digital-first payment processes that you would like to highlight?

It’s important that we continue to enhance the payments experience on both sides of the B2B transaction, for both suppliers and buyers – and one way to do that is straight-through processing, as virtual card transactions are on the rise.

With the right partners and solutions like Boost Intercept for qualifying American Express merchants, the digital transformation process is not only manageable but also cost-effective.

Today, businesses can implement digital payment systems quickly, often within just a few days, without the drawn-out, resource-intensive processes of the past.

We’re in a time of significant advancements in business software and technology, making integrations much simpler than they were years ago. Firms no longer need to fear lengthy tech cycles—modern digital solutions offer immediate operational and financial benefits, streamlining processes while reducing costs and manual intervention. At Boost we are continuously innovating to deliver solutions that streamline our clients' business operations. By simplifying complex processes on both sides of the transaction, we empower our clients to focus on what matters most.

Dean, thank you for taking the time to share your valuable insights with us.

 

*About Boost Payment Solutions

Boost Payment Solutions is the global leader in B2B payments with a technology platform that seamlessly serves the needs of today’s commercial trading partners. Our proprietary solutions eliminate friction and deliver process efficiency, data insights and revenue optimization. Boost was founded in 2009 and operates in 180+ countries.