A new American Express survey reveals that the majority of companies are trying to improve their payment processes in 2025, with automation emerging as a key focus. AMEX Trendex: B2B Payments Edition Survey votes for 1,000 US business decision makers, highlighting the role of streamlined payments in business growth, supplier relationships and operational efficiency.
Important findings
According to study91% of business decision makers recognize that “easy, streamlined and secure payments drive business growth.” However, despite this approval, only 17% of the companies surveyed fully automated their payment process, while 15% did not automate their payments at all.
Whether payments are late or late also has a concrete effect on business relationships, with 26% of respondents citing late payments as a reason they stopped working with buyers and suppliers. Furthermore, four in five business leaders (82%) showed that a single fraud case could have a significant impact on trust in business relationships.
Benefits of payment automation
Automated payments offer multiple benefits to businesses, including increased cash flow visibility, safer trading, and more operational efficiency.
“We are pleased to announce that Widad Chaoui, senior vice president of Corporate and B2B Solutions Product Management, a global commercial service for American Express. “Automated payment methods such as virtual cards and digital push payments promote more cash flow visibility, safer transactions and better relationships. They also give businesses greater working capital flexibility and allow them to invest in moving their business forward.”
Business leaders are aware of these benefits, with 29% of survey respondents saying they “sleep better at night” if they don’t have to worry about the accuracy and timeliness of payments. However, perceived barriers continue to prevent many companies from fully adopting automation.
Challenges for adopting automation
Despite its benefits, the survey found that concerns about costs (45%), lack of perceived benefits (28%) and security risks (26%) are one of the main reasons why businesses are not yet implementing full payment automation.
“In many cases, even if the current manual approach presents challenges, it can feel like a difficult task for business leaders to change their payment process from manuals to automated ones. “However, the reality is that the time and costs associated with automation are easier to implement than expected and can benefit the business in the short and long term.”
Automation as a growth strategy
The survey found that 95% of business decision makers believe that “easy, streamlined, and secure payments create happy customers.” In 2025, 43% of people planning on changing their payment processes cite business growth as their main motivation.
American Express identifies several key automated solutions that businesses can adopt to improve their payment processes.
- Automated AP (Accounts Payable) and AR (Accounts Receivable) Software Solutions – Reduce errors, save time and money, and increase cash flow efficiency.
- Static and Virtual Card Straight Through Processing – Complete electronic processing without manual steps.
- eipp (E-invoice announcement and payment) – Streamlined e-invoice and payment acceptance.
- Digital Push Payment – A transaction initiated by a payer to better manage the timing and destination of payments.
As businesses seek to improve efficiency and strengthen relationships with suppliers and buyers, automation is expected to play a key role in shaping payment strategies. Research suggests that a shift to automated payments could drive significant profits for businesses next year while challenges remain.
The AMEX Trendex B2B Payments Edition survey was conducted online by Openium Research on behalf of American Express from December 9, 2024 to January 2, 2025. The survey included 1,000 business decision makers from various industries selected based on the responsibility of financial services, accounting, banking, or business credit facilities within the organization.
Image: American Express
