As micro, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) dedicate 21,47 hours per week on expense management — the equivalent of more than 2 and a half days of an employee's work, based on a workday of 8 hours daily.These data are inserted in"Overview of Corporate Expense Management in Brazil" – edition 2025“, unpublished research conducted by theSimple Account, main platform for corporate expense management in Brazil, andVisa, global leader in payment technology. The study provides a detailed look at the current state of how companies manage their finances and the obstacles they face.
In 46% of these companies, the task falls on the owners or partners, limiting the time available for strategic activities. In microenterprises, this number rises to 59%.For the CEO and co-founder of Conta Simples, Rodrigo Tognini, this number is still very significant and highlights how Brazilian MPMEs are managing their finances in a traditional and archaic way, mainly because in a large part of companies it is the owners or partners who dedicate themselves to this activity, time that could be allocated to other more strategic functions.
"With the study, it became evident that, with the lack of organization, proper control and management of financial management, a barrier and a bottleneck for the growth and development of SMEs is created. This is all because the way it is made still resembles decades ago, without the right tools, and solutions that leverage these journeys. We understand that with a more structured and optimized administration, companies can allow their leadership to be free to focus on what really matters: business growth, Tognini evaluation
The director of Visa, Juliana Amoroso, it reinforces that today one of the most precious assets of companies is time management and this is a major pain point for small business entrepreneurs, media and microenterprises, that end up accumulating functions and hours of work. "When adopting innovative solutions", these entrepreneurs can automate repetitive processes, reduce human errors and free up valuable time that can be directed to essential strategic activities for the company's development, account
Financial management to the last detail – literally
An agile and efficient management is one that promotes more control, security and allows for more assertive decisions in resource allocation, something impossible for 39% of SMEs, that still use manual resources, like notebooks, to manage your expenses – approximately 7,5 million out of 21,8 million active companies. Microenterprises (45%) are the ones that most rely on inadequate solutions, followed by small businesses with 36% and medium-sized companies with 28%. This outdated method generates more headaches than solutions, since it takes excessive time and increases the likelihood of error, what compromises operational efficiency.
Still according to the survey, spreadsheets are the most used resource by Brazilian companies for expense management (65%), with emphasis also on the use of apps and bank statements (52%). The main reasons for resistance to adopting specialized solutions are habit (45%), the perception of high cost (44%) and not finding it necessary (38%).
Among the companies in the North and Northeast, the number of respondents who indicated "finding it easier to manage in the way they are used to" was higher, 70% and 67% respectively. The companies that stated they do not find a platform necessary were greater in the South, with 55%.When asked about the factors that could encourage the implementation of management platforms, the responses pointed to cost-benefit (49%), followed by simple language (39%) and accessible support (36%).
Technology is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity. Managing expenses efficiently is enabling the success of any strategy. Financial management software allows for the automatic categorization of corporate expenses, analyze data in real time, control the budget accurately and generate customized reports. These benefits enable not only to streamline processes, but also significantly reduce the risk of errors and bring insights for a more strategic and agile decision-making, clarifies Taeli Klaumann, CFO of Conta Simples
Personal and corporate finances on the same card impact business management
Another practice that can represent a limiting factor in the efficiency of daily operations is the use of a personal credit card for business expenses. The survey indicates that16% of Brazilian MPMEs (about 3,5 million companiesthey still have that habit, a practice that not only compromises financial organization, but it also harms the company's credibility with suppliers and financial institutions, making access to corporate credit more difficult
Companies that choose corporate credit cards reported benefits such as the elimination of bureaucratic processes, invoice record, reimbursement requests and accountability reports. The preference for the use of credit cards in companies is justified by attributes such as installment payments and payment terms (52%), financial organization (22%) and practicality (16%)
The director of Visa Brazil comments that the numbers reflect the importance of investing in a more professional financial management. It is essential for companies to separate personal finances from corporate finances to avoid complications and ensure greater control and transparency in financial management. With the adoption of corporate cards, entrepreneurs and collaborators can enjoy benefits such as the simplification of processes, the efficiency in operations and the expansion of financial control. This transforms B2B payment flows, improving efficiency and providing a smoother and safer payment experience for micro, small, and medium enterprises throughout Brazil
Even so, the study indicates that there is room for greater penetration of corporate cards in the market, given that 5 out of 10 companies that have credit cards have only 1 or 2 units available for the team, what can be a limiting factor in the efficiency of daily operations
The cost of misinformation
All this data brings an even more alarming number:100% of companies interviewed do not fully understand the meaning of “expense management”.While sectors like sales and marketing have platforms for automation and analysis, the financial sector often relies on generic solutions that do not meet its specific needs. The result is a financial management that is light-years behind the other areas of the company.
The CEO of Conta Simples clarifies the doubt: "Expense management is the process of planning, monitor and control expenses of, in the case, a company to ensure that financial resources are used efficiently and aligned with established objectives. It is a movement that involves the identification of expenses, categorization, analysis of consumption patterns, creation of budgets and implementation of tools or strategies to optimize spending and avoid waste, resume
Check out the complete study on Conta Simples and Visa here.
