American Express launches a cutting edge solution in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The new corporate expense management solution was introduced at a novel function held at Marriott Hotel in Riyadh on the 14th of June. The guests included major corporate and travel agency management in addition to specialized media and other industry professionals in the Kingdom.

A presentation by ASAL management on the features of the Corporate Travel Account (CTA) explained the exclusive benefits of the newly introduced service which will provide businesses with a complete industry-leading solution in managing their travel accounts. Unmatched efficiency and significantly minimized operational costs are the chief benefits of the CTA.

CTA is a cardless solution that will empower companies by providing greater transparency on their travel expenses, helping to streamline costs and identify important savings opportunities. CTA also supports the travel agencies, facilitating their operations and auditing requirements, particularly with regard to large corporate accounts. CTA removes the need for the travel agents themselves to allocate funds for airline bookings, thereby significantly improving their cash flow scenario.

Fahad Mubarak Al Guthami, Chief Operating Officer at American Express (Saudi Arabia) Limited told the audience,

'Today we are celebrating the launch of CTA in Saudi Arabia through Amex (Saudi Arabia) Limited as the first country in the Middle East to receive this innovative business solution and whereby the service is being developed for a rollout across other countries in the Middle East and North Africa.'

Al Guthami pointed that air travel spend on American Express Cards grew by a rate of 50% as compared to 2007. He said that CTA is set to redefine and streamline the management of such expenses throughout the Kingdom.

Commenting on the benefits of CTA, Al Guthami explained: 'For most companies in the Kingdom, travel and entertainment is often the third largest operating expense, of which air travel is the largest cost item. Meanwhile, travel agencies invest a great deal of money, time and resources in managing payment receivables. CTA has been launched as the ideal solution to overcome such challenges.'

'As a virtual solution, CTA enables the billing of air travel expenses through a centralized account lodged with travel agencies. This leads to greater speed and efficiency in processing the bookings of tickets. Descriptive billing statements provided by American Express to companies will provide enhanced data, thus helping them to easily reconcile and allocate these expenses. The central billing service provided by American Express also removes the need for travelers to process numerous high cost air travel expense claims. In addition, detailed management information is a highly valued product benefit that will provide companies in the Kingdom with the latest 'next practice' reporting capability,' he said.

Al Guthami added 'On the other hand the back-end cost of processing airline tickets booked through travel agents is managed by American Express. This means that travel agents are no longer required to allocate cash provisions for tickets booked through them. It also reduces time and manpower resources involved in the processing and follow up of payment receivables.'

Taking up the presentation, Mark Turner, Consultant of Expense Management solutions, said 'CTA reflects our competitive edge in the payments industry and our commitment to businesses and the travel industry sector. We are very pleased to launch this leading solution in Saudi Arabia as the largest payments market in the region with many local and multinational companies based in the Kingdom.'

Turner added that CTA is designed for corporations that spend over $50,000 annually on air travel. The CTA number is issued in the name of the company and is equipped with enhanced processes for dispute handling and partial payment. The CTA's highly descriptive monthly billing statement is enriched with supplementary data from the travel agent, such as invoice number, ticket number, departure date, full itinerary and client-specified data including cost-centre employee identification and project name.

Turner highlighted that this compelling financial management tool comes as a result of American Express' unique business model.

'Businesses will have greater confidence in knowing that their travel expenses are centrally routed through American Express. We are the single point of contact for issuing the CTA, managing the technology, risk and customer services.'

American Express is a major global partner and supporter of the international travel trade; CTA is being launched to support the Middle Eastern travel industry in its transition to a globally innovated business model.