Payments is an area ripe for optimization, and many companies have seized upon the opportunity to develop solutions that will streamline individual parts of the process, whether it's processing expense reports or approving invoices or marking new ledger entries. Payments platform Tipalti, based in California, on the other hand, does it all.
Every part of the accounts payable and payment management process, from onboarding new suppliers to reconciliation and reporting, is handled from one cloud platform. As a holistic solution, everything can be done within the Tipalti Hub. In lieu of a bank account, customers can use the Tipalti Hub as their primary method for reviewing balance and transaction information, including deposits.
While businesses of all types can use Tipalti, its focus has been primarily on serving finance leaders in high-growth companies with complex payment challenges that need more involved solutions. This is in contrast to those who focus on smaller businesses that don't need as much depth in their solutions, or larger ones with vast resources that are already able to integrate multiple vendors. It was in response to this very need that CEO and founder Chen Amit designed the platform's first version for a friend whose ad-tech firm was struggling with complex global payments — especially at the midmarket.
Alex Cedro, Tipalti's vice president of finance, discussed his company, its products and plans with Accounting Today.
How would you best describe what your company does?
Cedro: Simply put, we make global payments easy for firms of any size. Tipalti is the only global payables solution to streamline all phases of the AP and payment management workflow in one cloud platform. Our solutions address issues such as supplier onboarding and vetting, tax and regulatory compliance, invoice processing, payments to global suppliers, supplier payment status communications and payment reconciliation and reporting.
What is in your product line, and what is your flagship product?
Cedro: The Tipalti platform is a secure modern cloud infrastructure that is built for mass scale. Within it, there is supplier management, purchase order matching, tax compliance, payment reconciliation capabilities and much more.
Two major issues for financial executives and accounting professionals today are controls and security. We're constantly updating our platform to provide granular controls over payables and payment operations to increase security of sensitive financial data, ensure ongoing OFAC compliance and improve management oversight of key AP processes. Further, because Tipalti manages the end-to-end supplier payments operation, users can track a wide variety of relevant data points — contact details, account numbers, emails and payments — to proactively uncover patterns that help identify potential fraudsters.
In addition to enhancing our platform, we're tuned into what products our users need to be successful, which is how Bill Talk & Bill Docs were born. This feature, launched in 2022, makes it effortless for buyers and approvers to collaborate directly on the bill by exchanging questions and comments and attaching documents within Tipalti, all without needing to log in. On top of our own platform and its various features, we're also fully integrated with NetSuite, QuickBooks, Sage Xero and more.
What was the last big initiative your company completed?
Cedro: The most recent launch was the Tipalti Card, which was unveiled in September 2022 at our annual user conference, Illuminate. Tipalti Card combines quick virtual card issuance with end-to-end supplier payments, allowing users to manage and control business spend across all payment methods while achieving instant credit card reconciliation. The simplicity and convenience of the product show our ability to address the pain points we're hearing from users and the broader industry.
What is the most exciting new thing you're working on?
Cedro: We're currently testing and fine-tuning an expense management solution among early adopters, which will be available to the general public later this year. Tipalti Expenses will simplify expense management and reconciliation by capturing, organizing and centralizing all expenses in one seamless platform.
What is the biggest tech challenge facing accountants today?
Cedro: This sector has been historically undigitized until recently, and there are more software solutions available to accounting teams than ever before, making it overwhelming for buyers at times. Accountants need to choose a solution that's right for them; one that streamlines their workflow, enhances visibility and control, automates manual processes and increases efficiency, all while having the ability to grow and scale with the company. In light of this, our sales team is constantly educating current and potential users. We're really having to sell buyers and prospects twice: once on making the choice to digitize, and again on choosing the right partner that meets their needs and can help them to grow and scale.
The idea of automating can seem daunting, which is why we lead with our security. Not only do our cloud services regularly update so all users are operating on the best possible platform, but we are recognized by financial regulators around the world, offering peace of mind that all payments are made through a compliant and safe payment platform.
If you could telepathically transmit one sentence into the head of every accountant in the world, what would it be?
Cedro: At the end of the day, accounting is more than the day-to-day operations; it's about contributing value across the company, and taking advantage of tools that not only allow you to do that, but also get things done efficiently and accurately.
Tipalti at a glance:
HQ: Foster City, California
International offices: The U.K., Israel, the Netherlands, Canada, the Republic of Georgia
Customer base: 3,000+
Payment volume handled in 2022: $43 billion
Employees worldwide: 1,000+
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