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What are Capital on Tap cards?
Known familiarly as “Capontap,” Capital on Tap offers small business credit cards with low interest rates and little or no annual fees. The company was launched to provide easy access to funds and payment methods for entrepreneurs.
The cards let small business owners create physical and virtual cards for themselves and employees, and control how much is spent on each card. Companies can also access lines of credit at competitive interest rates.
Capital on Tap is not a bank, but rather a financial services provider which holds customer funds in separate bank accounts.
Capital on Tap card features
As of April 2023, capitalontap.com lists the following benefits:
Credit limits up to £250,000
1% cashback on purchases, with no limit
No annual fee
Unlimited cards per company
Up to 56 days interest free
Avios rewards points (for paying accounts)
Who can use Capital on Tap credit cards?
For UK businesses, the eligibility rules are as follows:
The applicant must be an active director or have 25%+ ownership in a UK business (registered with Companies House). Both you personally and the business are based in the United Kingdom.
Your business needs turnover of at least £24,000 per year.
You cannot have had any outstanding County Court Judgments for debt in the last 12 months against yourself or the business.
These are the criteria to apply. Once the application is accepted, employees can also have their own business credit cards.
Capital on Tap cards are not suitable for charities or trusts, PLCs, sole traders, and dormant or dissolved companies.
Alternatives to Capital on Tap
Capital on Tap is a great option for small and micro-enterprises that need access to credit and an easy way to make card purchases. It also provides modern solutions like virtual cards for online payments and accounting integrations with Xero and QuickBooks.
Neobanks
For the above reasons, it is similar to very low-fee business cards provided by Revolut, N26, Monzo, and more. These challenger banks emerged as more modern, tech-friendly options than large traditional banks. They usually make opening an account easy, let you set custom rules for employees, and charge low fees for adding more physical cards.
These options also typically offer credit lines and cashback.
Spend management solutions
The other Capital on Tap alternative is a spend management solution. These combine unlimited employee cards with invoice processing, expense reports, receipt collection, and pre-accounting software.
A spend management tool like Spendesk provides:
Virtual cards for online spending and to manage regular subscriptions
Physical cards to use while travelling or meeting clients
Invoicing tools that let every employee submit invoices easily
Expense claim modules to make expense reports smooth and flawless
Customisable controls, so only the right kinds of payments are requested, approved, and paid
Easy integrations so all this information passes directly to your accounting software with no added effort
The goal is to have one process for all company spending, no matter how the payment is made. This makes sense for companies from 30 employees and up, where accounts payable and expense claims can put a strain on the finance department, alongside card transactions.
If employees need access to payment methods, but finances more control and automation, this is the best option.
Learn more about spend management
How to choose a business credit card provider
The best credit card depends on your company’s particular needs. This includes your day-to-day challenges, the formal processes required, and how fast you plan to grow or scale.
Very small businesses
For small business owners with a handful of emlpoyees, flexibility and the ability to move quickly are most important. You don’t need formal processes, and access to funds can help your employees do their best work without roadblocks.
What to look for:
Credit facilities or business loans, particularly if company cash flow can be an issue.
Low interest rates or late repayment penalties when using those business funding options.
Business rewards and other incentive schemes to get more form each purchase.
Minimal ATM charges or other fees.
Quick setup and ease of use.
No impact on credit scores.
Growth startups, scaleups, & SMEs
At a certain point a lack of process clarity becomes an issue. And the more new processes you add, the more documentation and training needed for non-finance employees.
Here, you want to look for ways to integrate various different payment processes, while keeping things simple for everyone involved. You also want to save your finance team time and get through the monthly close quickly, so you have up-to-date reporting and can make smart decisions.
For this, you want a spend management solution, as explained above.
What to look for:
Clear overview of all card spend, with the spender, the approver, and the receipt all in one (digital) place.
Invoices, expenses, and cards running through the same system, so managers can easily monitor their budgets in real time.
Customisable rules and pre-approved limits depending on the employee, their team, and their level of seniority.
Automated reminders for users with late receipts, incomplete payment details, and duplicate transactions.
Trusted card providers like Visa and Mastercard (this applies for all businesses)
Get the best card for your small business today
Whether you choose Capital on Tap, Spendesk, or another fintech solution, make sure you consider you needs as a business today and in the future. Giving employees access to company funds is a big responsibility.
If you want to trust your teams while still keeping ultimate control and visibility over all spend, try Spendesk.