Huntington builds all-in-one payment platform for small business customers

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A small business might juggle several digital tools to process invoices, pay vendors and accept payments — tools that often don't sync. This cumbersome system can waste time and drive up costs.

Some of Huntington National Bank's small business customers were frustrated with this sort of payment setup.

"What we heard clearly was that business owners wanted simplicity," said Deepak Kapoor, senior vice president and head of payment products at Huntington National Bank. "They didn't want multiple fintech tools. They wanted their bank to provide a single place to manage cash in and cash out."

The $225 billion bank responded to those concerns with an all-in-one platform called Payments Connect.

A home remodeling contractor, for example, might traditionally send invoices by mail and email, wait for paper-check invoice payments to arrive, track accounts receivable in spreadsheets and separately initiate vendor payments.

Through Payments Connect, that contractor can create and send customized invoices by email and text, including payment links to receive payments immediately by card or ACH; track invoice payments; and make ACH payments to vendors.

Payments Connect reduces administrative work and accelerates invoice payments, "which is one of the most important drivers of small business liquidity," Kapoor said. A 2025 survey by QuickBooks found that U.S. small businesses with outstanding invoices were owed an average of $17,500, interrupting cash flow and prompting some businesses to lean more heavily on credit.

Today, Payment Connects remains in the pilot phase. Huntington released a beta version in July and introduced the platform to sole proprietors in October. A broad rollout is planned for the second quarter of this year, Kapoor said.

"I believe once we do the full launch, we'll see a strong adoption from small businesses that previously relied on manual processes or third-party invoicing tools," he said. "We will also see an increase in digital payment activity, a decrease in administrative work and businesses will have clearer visibility into their cash flow."

Kapoor said Payments Connect was designed to offer the same capabilities as consumer apps, such as speed, convenience and integrated experiences.

"As real-time payments and embedded payment experiences grow, Payments Connect gives us the ability to introduce faster payments, expand payment acceptance methods and integrate deeper into small business workflows," he said.

What differentiates Payments Connect from other digital payment tools? Many fintech tools focus on just one aspect, such as invoicing or vendor payments, Kapoor said, but small businesses "rarely operate in such silos." By contrast, Payments Connect delivers a one-stop invoice and payment platform within Huntington's digital banking infrastructure.

"Ultimately, the goal is to make Huntington the central operating platform for small business cash flow, not just a place where transactions settle," Kapoor said.