Paying staff and suppliers just became easier with MYOB

Suppliers and staff can now be paid on the same day that payment is processed directly from MYOB software packages, thanks to a new deal struck between payments giant Mastercard and MYOB.

At the moment, paying suppliers and staff is an often-arduous process that takes up a lot of time and energy for small business owners.

Paying suppliers

Paying suppliers required users to log out of their MYOB software file, log into their online banking portal, and then pay the supplier.

In fact, in a recent six-week period, $2.2 billion worth of supplier payments were processed using this manual process.

But thanks to this new partnership initiative, small business owners will be able to pay invoices directly from their MYOB software file – creating significant time savings in the process.

Here’s how it works:

• Business owner receive an invoice from a supplier
• The invoice is entered into MYOB’s online accounting software (which can be automated with a Smart Bills service)
• They select one or more invoices they want to pay from the software and hit a ‘Pay Now’ button
• When ‘Pay Now’ button is clicked MYOB will:

                    o   Process the value of these invoices against a debit or credit card that has been stored securely

                    o   Same day payment to suppliers on behalf of the customer

                    o   Update the accounting software to show invoice(s) has been paid

Meanwhile, business owners will also have a fast new option for processing payroll.

Processing payroll

They will now have the option to pay staff from a nominated debit or credit card, with the staff to receive payment on the same day it’s made.

Here’s how it works:

• Employee details are entered into MYOB’s software, including his or her nominated bank account
• Payroll is then calculated with the owner prompted to hit a ‘Pay Now’ button
• When ‘Pay Now’ is clicked MYOB will:

o   Process the value of pay run against a debit or credit card that has been stored securely

o   Same day payment to employees on their behalf

o   Updates the accounting software to show payroll has been made

The new functionality has the potential to not only save time for small business owners, but also solve a key cash flow issue – and it’s just a sign of things to come.

READ NEXT: How to streamline payroll processing

Innovation in payments

MYOB chief executive Tim Reed said the deal between the company and Mastercard was an example of two companies working together to drive outcomes for Australian small businesses.

“This is another example of how we’re developing a financial ecosystem around the needs of customers,” he said.

“By identifying pain points such as manual processing and working with global partners to come up with solutions, we can give small business owners more control over their operation.”

More broadly, annual commercial payments in Australia are estimated to be $2.2 trillion, with that figure expected to go up to $2.7 trillion in 2022.

Small businesses make up $639 billion of that figure.

Suffice it to say, a lot of payments are made – and anything to speed up that process is a blessing for time-poor small businesses.

The new arrangement is just a sign of things to come in the payment space.

“In the next five years we will see more change in payments than we’ve seen in the previous 50 years,” said Mastercard division president for Australasia, Richard Wormald.

“Enabling small business owners with enhanced payment technology is just the first of many initiatives we will deliver in partnership with MYOB.”

Unfortunately, the newly announced functionality hasn’t hit the market just yet. But small business owners won’t have long to wait, as it’s expected to begin rolling out in the first quarter of 2019.