Starling Bank: Starling Unveils Expense Cards and Team Access Tool for SMEss
Starling Bank has today launched two free tools for small business customers that will empower owners to delegate spending and share account visibility with team members, helping keep their finances on track.
Bernadette Smith, chief customer and banking officer, said: “We are giving business owners the power to delegate daily spending and visibility without sacrificing an ounce of financial control. Expense Cards and Team Access are designed to eliminate administrative headaches, saving small companies valuable time and making their lives easier.”
Starling research recently showed that the average small business owner spends £63,000 a year managing their finances, so these tools will be welcome news for the bank’s customers, which account for nearly 10% of the UK’s SMEs.
Expense Cards
Within the Starling app, businesses can order up to five free physical Expense Cards in just a few seconds. This allows owners to safely delegate day-to-day spending to trusted team members without sharing full account access. By enabling employees to make secure in-person and online purchases directly, businesses eliminate the tedious expense reimbursement process, saving valuable time.
To ensure business owners retain oversight, each card is linked directly to a dedicated Expense Card Space (a separate sub-account). Business owners control the budget by simply transferring money into the Space, capping daily spend at a maximum of £5,000. Owners receive real-time notifications for every transaction and can instantly lock cards, change PINs, or restrict spending via the Starling app.
Team Access
Starling has also launched Team Access, another time saving free feature which allows business owners to securely invite up to five users such as staff, bookkeepers, or accountants to view account information from their own iOS or Android devices.
To protect security, invited members have read-only access to view transactions, download statements, and monitor cash flow, with no permission to move money. Business owners maintain full control, with the ability to instantly grant or revoke access in-app. Later this year, accountants will also be able to view clients’ tax reports via Starling Accounting.