Wisevoter
World

Organizations Struggle With B2B Payment Modernization

A new WEX survey reveals that 85% of businesses face internal obstacles while attempting to modernize B2B payment systems.

Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Financial Services

Isometric editorial illustration of abstract metallic conduits and heat-sink fins, representing modern digital payment infrastructure.
A WEX survey of organizations shows that 85% of businesses struggle with the technical and administrative challenges of modernizing B2B payment infrastructure. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Live Poll

Do you believe updating business payment systems is worth the administrative burden of modernization?

While nearly two-thirds of organizations boosted digital payment usage over the past year, many face significant barriers. A survey by WEX highlights that complex administrative burdens and security concerns continue to hinder adoption efforts.

Why it matters

Companies are shifting toward digital payments to reduce operational costs and streamline workflows, but manual processes often struggle to keep pace with high transaction volumes. These findings underscore the tension between the need for efficiency and the technical hurdles of implementing new financial infrastructure.

Technology implementation costs remain a primary barrier for 51% of firms, while 54% cite security concerns and 74% report administrative burdens. Additionally, 56% of surveyed organizations process more than 1,000 supplier payments monthly.

The players

WEX

WEX is a financial technology company that provides corporate payment solutions and fleet management software.

The details

Organizations are increasingly turning to AI to solve challenges like fraud detection, risk scoring, and invoice processing. Despite this intent, change management and integration difficulties remain common, with over 25% of firms reporting fraud incidents in the last six months.

Timeline

  1. Over 25% of organizations experienced fraud in the past six months.

  2. Nearly two-thirds of organizations increased digital payment usage in the past year.

  3. 44% of organizations plan to adopt agentic AI within the next two years.

Market Landscape

This survey reflects a wider movement as firms aggressively modernize financial infrastructure to remain competitive. The report highlights how this drive towards digital maturity follows the ongoing industry-wide adoption of AI in financial services.

Customers may see improved security and faster processing times as companies transition away from manual invoice handling. However, businesses struggling with these technology hurdles might temporarily experience service delays or increased costs during the integration phase.

The takeaway

Businesses must prioritize change management as highly as their software investments to overcome the friction inherent in modernizing payment systems. Leadership should focus on integrating AI not just for efficiency, but to directly address the security gaps that currently lead to frequent fraud incidents.

Further reading

Learn more about the latest developments in the sector on the Financial Services page.

Source note: This article includes information reported by Financial IT.

Live Poll

Do you believe updating business payment systems is worth the administrative burden of modernization?