Case Study: 6 Expense Management Platforms That Integrate with Open Banking [2025]

Managing business expenses shouldn’t feel like a never-ending paper trail.

But for most finance teams, that’s the reality — sifting through receipts, matching transactions manually, and waiting days to verify what’s already been spent. And as your business grows, so does the complexity.

That’s where Open Banking comes in.

By securely connecting your business bank accounts directly to your expense management platform, Open Banking lets you:

• Pull live bank data instantly (no more waiting for statements)
• Match transactions in real time (less time spent on reconciliation)
• Automate reimbursements and reporting (more time for strategy)
• Reduce the risk of fraud or error (because you’re always working from the source)

In this guide, we’ll explore six expense management platforms that integrate with Open Banking, giving you faster access to your financial data and greater control over every penny leaving your business.

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1. Soldo

Soldo isn’t just another business card provider — it’s a full-scale expense management solution designed for UK businesses that want better control over budgets and team spending. With Open Banking integrations, Soldo makes it easier to move money instantly and track how it’s used.

How It Uses Open Banking

Using secure APIs, Soldo connects directly to your bank, enabling you to top up wallets, monitor transactions, and sync financial data without delay. No more manual data entry, file uploads, or guessing where the money went.

How That Helps Your Finance Team

• You get real-time access to expense data across teams and departments.
• Transactions can be matched and reconciled without waiting for monthly statements.
• It reduces fraud risk, especially when used with virtual cards and spending limits.

Best For

Finance teams that want to automate spend control without sacrificing visibility or compliance.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• Instant top-ups via secure bank links
• Real-time spend tracking across team cards and departments
• Built-in rules for categorising and approving expenses

Integrations

• Xero
• NetSuite
• Sage
• Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central

2. Pleo

Pleo has become a go-to for finance teams looking to modernise how employees handle spending. What sets it apart in the expense management space is how simple it makes capturing, categorising, and reviewing business expenses, all while keeping everything connected to your actual bank data.

How It Uses Open Banking

Pleo integrates Open Banking to offer instant wallet top-ups and real-time transaction tracking. This means funds can be pushed to the employee card directly from your business bank account, and every transaction is instantly recorded and matched — no manual intervention required.

How That Improves Expense Management

• You get immediate visibility into who’s spending what, and where.
• Employees don’t need to wait for reimbursements — they use preloaded cards tied to real-time budgets.
• Bookkeepers spend less time chasing receipts or fixing reconciliation errors.

Best For

SMEs looking for a smart, card-based expense management solution that simplifies team spending and improves control.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• Instant account-to-account wallet top-ups via Open Banking
• Real-time notifications and transaction syncing
• Built-in approval flows and spending limits for each user
• Auto-matching of receipts with expenses

Integrations

• Xero
• QuickBooks
• NetSuite

3. Spendesk

Spendesk is more than just a tool for paying suppliers — it’s a complete expense management platform built to give finance teams full visibility over company spending. It’s especially popular among startups and mid-sized teams that need flexibility, control, and automation without overly complex tools.

How It Uses Open Banking

While Spendesk doesn’t rely on Open Banking directly for initiating payments, it enables real-time transaction syncing and automated reconciliation through secure bank feed connections and integrations. This allows your finance team to see every payment as it happens, flag issues quickly, and keep books up to date — all without relying on manual bank statement imports.

How That Helps You Manage Expenses

• Transactions flow into your accounting tools in real time
• You avoid double entry and late reconciliations
• Employee spending becomes trackable and policy-aligned from day one

Best For

Startups and scaling businesses that need flexible tools to manage team spending, subscriptions, and reimbursements in one place.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• Prepaid virtual and physical cards with real-time controls
• Automated receipt capture and matching
• Centralised dashboards for approvals and reporting
• Streamlined reconciliation via accounting integrations

Integrations

• Xero
• QuickBooks
• NetSuite

4. Emburse Certify

If you’re dealing with travel-heavy teams, field staff, or complex expense policies, Emburse Certify (now positioned under the Emburse Professional suite) gives you granular control over how expenses are submitted, approved, and audited. It’s a solid choice for finance teams that need a more structured approach to expense management without sacrificing flexibility.

How It Uses Open Banking

Emburse Certify’s open API allows businesses to connect with Open Banking-enabled providers or feed live bank data into the platform. That means you can automate reconciliation, speed up approvals, and reduce human error, especially when syncing with accounting software or payment rails that already use Open Banking.

How That Supports Your Workflow

• Integrations with payment services let you securely validate and process reimbursements
• Data from connected bank feeds helps ensure every transaction is accounted for in real time
• You can automate recurring expense rules and cross-check with live financial activity

Best For

Mid-sized or growing companies that need deeper policy enforcement, multi-level approvals, and robust audit trails.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• Mobile expense capture and automated categorisation
• Policy-based workflows for faster approvals
• Integration-friendly setup with support for Open Banking-enabled tools
• Comprehensive dashboards for auditing and reporting

Integrations

• NetSuite
• QuickBooks
• Salesforce

5. Yokoy

Yokoy combines AI and automation to simplify expense management for companies with high volumes of transactions, multiple entities, or global operations. It’s built to reduce manual work and increase accuracy — all while supporting compliance at scale.

How It Uses Open Banking

Yokoy’s open API enables integration with Open Banking providers, allowing businesses to securely connect their bank accounts for real-time financial data access. This means expense reports can be cross-verified against actual bank activity, and transactions can be reconciled faster, no more waiting for statements or manually matching line items.

How That Helps Streamline Expense Management

• AI scans and categorises expenses instantly, using live data from connected accounts
• Fraud risks are reduced thanks to automatic flagging of inconsistencies
• Finance teams can close books faster with up-to-date bank feeds and automated reconciliations

Best For

Mid-size to enterprise-level organisations with global expense tracking needs and a preference for automated workflows.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• AI-powered expense categorisation and policy checks
• Real-time syncing with connected financial accounts
• Configurable approval flows based on spend type or team
• Centralised platform for travel, invoice, and expense control

Integrations

• SAP
• Microsoft Dynamics 365
• Oracle NetSuite

6. Payhawk

Payhawk is quickly becoming a favourite among finance teams that need end-to-end expense management across multiple locations, teams, and currencies. What makes Payhawk stand out is its native support for Open Banking, offering both control and visibility at scale.

How It Uses Open Banking

Through a direct partnership with an Open Banking provider, Payhawk enables instant account-to-account top-ups, bank account linking, and real-time transaction feeds. This means finance teams can track spend live, reconcile transactions automatically, and move funds between wallets without logging into bank portals.

How That Helps Modern Expense Management

• Wallets can be topped up instantly when budgets run low, avoiding spend delays
• Every transaction is instantly visible, helping finance stay proactive, not reactive
• Month-end close becomes significantly faster with real-time bank data sync

Best For

Scaling teams that need a single platform for cards, invoices, reimbursements, and travel — with built-in Open Banking capabilities for smarter money movement.

Key Features That Support Expense Management

• Real-time bank data via Open Banking APIs
• Corporate cards with smart controls and automated spend categorisation
• Integrated invoice management and approval workflows
• Multi-entity, multi-currency spend visibility

Integrations

• Xero
• QuickBooks
• Oracle NetSuite

Finexer: Making Open Banking Integration Affordable and Scalable

All of the platforms we covered above offer strong features, but not every business needs a bundled solution or wants to pay enterprise prices just to access Open Banking features. That’s where Finexer comes in.

Whether you’re using a spend management tool or building your own workflows, Finexer gives you direct access to Open Banking infrastructure so you can control expenses more efficiently, without getting locked into expensive software suites.

Why Businesses Choose Finexer for Expense Management

✅ Instant Bank Connections
Connect to 99% of UK banks using secure, regulated Open Banking APIs — no scraping, no delays.

✅ Real-Time Data Sync
Access live transaction data and account balances to reconcile spend in real time, automate policy checks, and reduce manual entry.

✅ Pay-As-You-Grow Pricing
Finexer uses a usage-based pricing model. No monthly minimums. No setup fees. Just a transparent way to manage your costs as you scale.

✅ Built for UK Startups and Finance Teams
Unlike global-first tools that add UK support later, Finexer is designed specifically for UK companies, with faster deployment, FCA-authorised infrastructure, and startup-friendly flexibility.