KeyCorp will enter the commercial purchasing and fleet card market through a partnership with Paymentech Inc., which will manage the program on behalf of the bank.
Paymentech, a unit of Banc One Corp., has similar arrangements with about 70 other banks, including Northern Trust Corp. of Chicago and Riggs National Corp. of Washington.
For KeyBank of Cleveland, the lead subsidiary of KeyCorp, the processor will provide commercial Visa and MasterCard cards for large and midsize companies.
"KeyCorp will be able to take advantage of our technology, and they can immediately move into the commercial card market," said James W. Baumgartner, president of Paymentech's commercial card unit.
Irene E. Servose, product manager for KeyBank, said one benefit of the commercial card offering will be cross-selling.
"As a third-party provider of these products and services, Paymentech will work with Key in a way that complements our many other services," Ms. Servose said. "Paymentech will help us reach our midsize business clients, who represent the next wave for integrated purchasing and fleet payment programs."
Paymentech also announced an Internet service, PaymentNet, that lets corporate card customers track transactions.
"If we paid for breakfast on a corporate card today, we'd be able to look at it tomorrow," Mr. Baumgartner said.
The system works with any browser and offers detailed transaction information, he said, adding it would be particularly useful for corporate clients with multiple offices. For example, Paymentech corporate card customer Browning-Ferris Industries, the waste hauler, "has 500 or so locations and needs to get transactions approved to different cost centers," he said.
The commercial card market represents less than 1.5% of the overall card market, Mr. Baumgartner said. But, he added, "I believe it has tremendous potential."
