More Control, Greater Simplicity, Less Friction: How Integrating BBVA Pivot Cards with SAP Concur Streamlines Corporate Payments

SAP Concur Day 2026 once again gathered companies, experts, and technology partners to explore how digitalization, automation, and artificial intelligence are reshaping corporate travel and expense management. Sergio Ortega, Global Head of Corporate Cards for Commercial Banking at BBVA, took part in the event and explained how integrating payment solutions with artificial intelligence will simplify the process: “Artificial intelligence adds an extra layer of security and efficiency. It flags potential deviations, suggests temporary adjustments, and enables smarter management of corporate spending.” The event was hosted by director and actor Santiago Segura, winner of three Goya Awards from the Spanish Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Sergio Ortega highlighted the role of integrated payment solutions and artificial intelligence in streamlining travel expense management: “For expense management to be truly simple, payments must be secure, integrated, and designed for companies’ day-to-day needs,” he said.BBVA Pivot brings together all the treasury solutions that companies, institutions, and governments need on a single platform, helping them manage their financial activity more simply and efficiently.

SAP Concur is SAP’s specialized solution for corporate travel and expense management. It enables companies to plan business trips, record expenses, automate approvals, and strengthen compliance with internal policies.

The integration of the two solutions—part of a strategic alliance between BBVA and SAP Concur—connects the payment itself with the expense management process that follows, reducing administrative friction and improving traceability across the information flow.

Who’s Calling the Shots on Corporate Expenses?

In his remarks, Sergio Ortega stressed that one of the biggest pain points for companies isn’t just technology—it’s ownership. “Quite often, the real challenge is figuring out who’s directing this film. Every company is different, but the pattern is the same: ‘This isn’t mine—it belongs to someone else.’ And that’s when the usual suspects show up: HR, travel managers, Finance, Compliance, and even IT,” he said.

“The title of this film could well be ‘We’ve Always Done It This Way’. And from there, you’re dealing with legacy processes and inertia that are hard to shift precisely because ‘it’s always been done this way’—and it feels untouchable,” he added.

Once ownership is clear, the next step is to define the payments policy: whether to use cash advances, employees’ personal cards, or corporate cards. This is where an integrated solution becomes especially important. Integration and Automation: The Difference from Traditional Models

Integrating BBVA corporate cards—Spain, Portugal, Türkiye, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, and Uruguay—with SAP Concur Expense marks a clear shift away from traditional models.

For companies, the benefits are significant:

•     Greater control and automated reconciliation.
•     Data captured at the source (date, merchant, category, amount, and currency).
•     Fewer errors and issues linked to manual receipts or missing digital documentation.

For employees, the main advantage is simplicity:

•     Transactions are automatically uploaded to SAP Concur after payment.
•     No manual processes or field-by-field data entry.
•     A clear separation between personal and business expenses.

As Ortega noted, digitizing payments not only increases efficiency—it also strengthens transparency and compliance with internal policies.

A Better Employee Experience and Stronger Business Control: The Right Balance

One of the biggest challenges in expense management is striking the right balance between control and user experience. From BBVA’s perspective, corporate payment solutions make it possible to achieve both.

Employees have access to a corporate credit line tailored to their needs, so they don’t have to advance personal funds or deal with foreign currency when traveling internationally. They can use the card in person (Chip & PIN or contactless), through digital wallets, or for online purchases.

The experience is rounded out by the BBVA app, which gives users full control: they can receive real-time alerts, authorize online purchases, check transactions instantly, and temporarily switch the card on or off. All of this comes with the highest security standards.

The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Corporate Payments

Artificial intelligence was another key focus of the event. In payments, its potential stands out in prevention and anticipation. As BBVA’s Global Head of Corporate Cards for Commercial Banking explained, AI will make it possible to:

•     Flag payments that may fall outside company policy (for example, when a daily meal limit is exceeded).
•     Detect suspicious transactions based on location or spending patterns.
•     Alert employees when they are close to reaching their credit limit ahead of an upcoming trip.
•     Recommend temporary adjustments based on travel history.

This intelligent layer adds predictive and preventive capabilities, enhancing both the employee experience and the company’s risk management.

BBVA Pivot and SAP Concur: A Strategic Alliance for Businesses

BBVA’s participation in SAP Concur Day 2026 reflects a partnership that has steadily grown in recent years. The technological integration between BBVA and SAP Concur began in 2018, automating the transfer of corporate card payments into the expense management platform. In 2020, the two companies formalized a strategic partnership to simplify business expense management. In 2023, they broadened the alliance with a commercial agreement focused on shared clients.

More recently, the alliance has expanded into treasury management through BBVA Pivot, the bank’s global treasury platform. This step further strengthens integration with the SAP ecosystem and enhances services for Corporate Banking and businesses.

BBVA Pivot brings together payments, collections, liquidity, and financial control solutions in a single environment. Its integration with SAP Concur connects the payment itself with the expense management process that follows. The aim is clear: drive more automated processes while increasing visibility, traceability, and operational efficiency for organizations.