MineralTree, a cloud-based solution that is available through banks, now offers small and medium-sized businesses a new way to manage payments. The company seeks to simplify and secure the approval, execution, and automation of accounts payable and cash management in a way that was previously unavailable to any but the largest corporations and enterprises, the company says.

The MineralTree solution is layered over existing accounting applications and integrates directly with the bank’s payment systems, with no change to either. It features three apps:

•    The MineralTree Accounting Manager Application is a web-based add-on to the SMB’s existing accounting system. It is used to manage payables including entering payment information, associate payments with backup documents and to prioritize, recommend and submit payments to the CFO or business owner for approval.

•    The MineralTree CFO Application is used by the CFO or responsible executive to approve and release payments. It is available as an iPad app and as a secure web app.

•    The MineralTree Bank Operations Application is a web-based app used by the bank to manage MineralTree users.

All three apps are linked via the MineralTree Payments Server, which coordinates and manages all payment functions of the system—between customers, the bank, and payment service providers such as check issuers. It also provides a single, universal conduit for all payment channels, including check, ACH, wire, payment cards, and other emerging payment channels such as PayPal, and mobile banking.

“SMBs save time and money by automating the entire process, while gaining peace-of-mind that they won't become a victim of the increasingly sophisticated methods of today's cyber criminals. Banks, in turn, can differentiate their services, increase customer loyalty and protect themselves from potentially costly litigation and bad publicity associated with criminal acts against their customers,” says B.C. Krishna, founder and CEO of MineralTree, Inc.

Silicon Valley Bank, a unit of SVB Financial Group in Santa Clara, Calif., is the first bank to implement the MineralTree solution and offer it to its SMB customers.

As with all enterprises, SMBs typically make four common types of payments: employee expenses, vendors, recurring bills (e.g., utilities), and government taxes. The number of monthly payments may be anywhere from a few dozen to several thousand.

While SMB payments and cash management processes are generally manual, they are routinely supported by two types of electronic systems—internal accounting systems (e.g., QuickBooks), and external banking systems (e.g., online banking and online bill pay).

For more information go to http://www.mineraltree.com/.