A corporate card is a payment card issued by a business to its employees or teams for company-related spending, with the company (not the individual) being responsible for the balance.
A corporate card is a payment card a company issues to employees or teams specifically for business expenses.
Unlike a personal credit card, the liability sits with the company, not the individual using the card. This means employees aren't personally on the hook for business purchases, and the company has direct control over how the card is used.
Physical cards
These work like any standard payment card at a terminal or ATM.
Virtual cards
These exist digitally and are used for online purchases, subscriptions or vendor payments without a physical card ever being issued.
Most businesses issue corporate cards to employees who need to make purchases on the company's behalf, without using a single shared card or a reimbursement process. These purchases can include travel, software subscriptions, client expenses or day-to-day operational spend.
Using a corporate card is simple and works in 4 steps:
These 3 payment methods are often used interchangeably, but each one works differently.
A business debit card is tied to a single business bank account and typically used by one person, usually an owner or finance lead, for direct transactions. It doesn't offer the same per-employee visibility or control as a corporate card. For a full breakdown of corporate cards versus debit cards, see our comparison guide.
Petty cash is a physical cash reserve with no digital trail, built-in spend limits or automatic record of who spent what.
Corporate cards also offer a benefit neither alternative does: the opportunity to earn on business spend. With Mamo’s Premium plan, businesses earn up to 2% cashback on non-AED spend, which means everyday business spend turns into savings and not just another expense.
Modern corporate card platforms give businesses direct control over how each card can be used:
With Mamo Cards, businesses can issue unlimited virtual and physical corporate cards for free, set spend limits and category controls per card and see every transaction in the dashboard in real time.
Most UAE banks offer corporate cards. However, the process typically involves lengthy approval timelines and per-card fees that scale with team size. For businesses that need to issue cards quickly, or issue many of them, this can be a bottleneck.
Fintech providers offer an alternative — corporate cards issued instantly, without bank queues or per-card charges.
Mamo issues corporate cards instantly, with no bank queues, no per-card fees and no limit on how many cards a business can issue. Mamo is regulated by the DFSA as an issuer of payment instruments and stored value in the UAE. For more on how that regulatory relationship works in practice, see our guide to Mamo and regulation.
No. Corporate cards are intended for business expenses only, and most platforms restrict or flag personal use.
No. Since the company is liable for the balance, corporate card usage doesn't appear on an employee's personal credit report.
This depends on the provider. Some limit the number of cards or charge per card, while others, like Mamo, allow unlimited free cards.
Getting started with a corporate card takes 3 steps:
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