One card, many staff: who used it?

Lots of small businesses swapped the petty cash tin for one debit card kept in a drawer. It has the same problem: a charge shows up on the statement and nobody remembers what it was, who bought it, or where the receipt went.

What goes wrong with a shared card

• Mystery charges. The statement says "Woolworths $47.20". Was that milk for the staffroom or someone's groceries?
• No receipts at tax time. Your bookkeeper can't claim GST or VAT on a purchase with no receipt.
• No name. When something looks wrong, there's nobody to ask.

The simple fix: log it when you use it

1. Keep a QR code with the card (a sticker on the card sleeve or the drawer).
2. Whoever uses the card scans the QR with their phone, picks their name, enters the amount and what it was for, and snaps the receipt. It takes about 20 seconds.
3. At month end, tick the statement against the log. Anything on the statement that isn't in the log is your mystery charge, with a short list of who had the card that day.

Using PettyCashing for a shared card

PettyCashing was built for petty cash tins, and it works for a shared card today. Set the "float" to the card's monthly spending limit, and each purchase comes off it, so you can see what's left to spend. Each month, reset it with "Put cash in".

Your accountant can get every receipt and a CSV on the 2nd of each month, automatically.

Why not a card platform?

Pleo, Expensify and similar tools are good if you want to issue a card to every employee. They charge per person each month. If you just want one shared card used properly, PettyCashing is one flat price per business, any number of staff, and staff don't need an account. See the full comparison.