citi integrated freight processing (cifp) - citibank
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Citi® Integrated Freight Processing for the U.S. GovernmentA powerful e-solution for managing and paying transportation-related expenses
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Finally… a better way to receive, audit and pay freight
invoices that improves efficiency, costs and
financial controls and also meets the unique
demands of the U.S. government
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It’s no secret that managing transportation payments,
even when you have a reliable system for managing
shipping activities themselves, can be prone to costly
errors, inefficiencies and risks… unless you have an
equally reliable and integrated solution for managing
shipping invoices and payments, that is.
Citi® Integrated Freight Processing is that solution.
Our U.S. government-approved and -deployed application
streamlines the entire audit, approval and payment
process for freight invoices, replacing cumbersome and
costly manual activities with more reliable and efficient
electronic ones.
Citi® Integrated Freight Processing.
A web-based solution that
automates transportation-related
invoices and payments… and
can trim up to 10% off your
transportation costs.
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Citi Integrated Freight Processing, for instance, helps
mitigate the payment of fraudulent or duplicate invoices
and avoids errors associated with allocating expenses to
the wrong cost centers.
In fact, studies show that automating manual processes
can save as much as $5 per invoice and can trim up to
10 percent off overall transportation costs.
Enhance operational efficiency, improve financial controls
Citi Integrated Freight Processing consolidates multiple
manual processes into a single automated stream,
creating a host of operational benefits that include:
• Elimination of man-hours spent handling paperwork
• Elimination of hard costs associated with postage,
check stock and late charges
• Ability to electronically capture and store all invoice
images and data in one location
• Real-time visibility into invoice, approval and payment
status for all parties to a transaction
• Systematic and standardized prepayment audit
procedures that ensure invoices meet payment
criteria before they are posted, and that disputes
are resolved quickly
• Automated, faster payment of invoices once audits
are passed
• Creation of a full audit trail to ensure compliance with
policies and regulatory requirements
• Standardization of electronic file and data formats
and automated postings of expense allocations to
your accounting systems, down to line items
• Around-the-clock access to a centralized online
repository of transaction data and analytics
“Our clients, public sector and private alike, are demanding that we help
them digitize paper flows and leverage business intelligence to reap
operational efficiencies and push down cost curves.”
Kevin FitzgeraldHead of Public Sector, North AmericaCiti Global Transaction Services
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Eliminate manual activities and audit findings, automate account coding
No matter how simple or complex your freight and
shipping activities are, Citi Integrated Freight
Processing can consolidate, expedite and simplify
your payment activities.
Here’s how it works:
• Transportation service providers submit invoices
electronically to Citi Integrated Freight Processing
• Invoices are matched with bills of lading and
prepayment audits are conducted based on your
agency’s specific audit rules
• The system automatically conducts prepayment audits
that match invoices with bills of lading or purchase
orders and that are based on your agency’s specific
audit rules and specified data fields
• Invoices that pass prepayment audits are paid
automatically by Citi, with carriers receiving one
payment daily for all of their approved invoices
• Invoices that do not meet prepayment criteria are
flagged as exceptions and you are notified
immediately so that you can resolve disputes and
negotiate terms with your providers online
• Each month you receive a single monthly bill that
consolidates all of your shipping invoices
• You and your carriers can log on to the system to
run order, invoice and payment reports
Kevin FitzgeraldHead of Public Sector, North AmericaCiti Global Transaction Services
Audit Post Present Pay
• Shippers submit bills of lading
• Carriers submit invoices electronically to the system
• The system performs audits, matching key fields from bills of lading to carriers’ invoices
• Expenses are posted to your general ledger based on your chart of accounts and automated account coding rules
• Invoices are paid automatically via business rules, or are presented for your approval. All invoice resolution is done online and you have the ability to route invoices to multiple approvers
• Citi pays freight carriers daily via ACH for all of their approved invoices
• Your invoices are aggregated into one monthly invoice from Citi
View and Analyze
• All parties have visibility into invoice, approval and payment status
• Analytic and reporting tools provide you with intelligence on transportation spend and trends
Citi Integrated Freight Processing provides a single platform for simplifying and automating the entire audit, approval, payment and expense allocation process, end-to-end.
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Citi Integrated Freight Processing offers you a one-stop
solution and single platform for reducing margins of
error on all your transportation invoices and payments.
It also ensures timely, efficient settlement of invoices,
allowing you to maximize vendor discounts and reduce
the risk of late charges and post-audit fees.
In addition, the system enables all parties to a
transaction to access invoice, approval and payment
status with just a few keystrokes — a win-win for you
and your transportation service providers.
A single window and one invoice for thousands of transportation providers
More than 10,000 transportation service providers
conduct business over the Citi Integrated Freight
Processing platform, and new carriers can readily be
added, ensuring standardized, centralized and easily
auditable invoice and payments data for all of your
providers — no matter where you do business with them.
Citi, which operates one of the most comprehensive
domestic and cross-border payment networks in the
world, provides centralized processing for all your
invoices and payments and fast, efficient electronic
disbursements to 180 countries in over 130 currencies.
Each month, you receive just one invoice for all your
transportation expenses, for all carriers, modes of
transportation and types of shipments, including
household goods. Plus, you gain around-the-clock
access to real-time payment details and general ledger
assignments for all your transactions.
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With Citi Integrated Freight Processing, everything from
prepayment audits to expense allocations takes place
online and automatically, which dramatically reduces
the need for intervention from your personnel and
simplifies workflows.
Zero cost to procure, hassle-free implementation
The Citi Integrated Freight Processing solution not only
eliminates manual processes, lowers processing costs
and increases control over cash flows, it can be procured
free of charge and can typically be implemented in
60 to 90 days.
Citi, as the prime transportation payments provider
for the General Services Administration Office of
Transportation Management through PayPort Express
and processor of nearly 90 percent of the U.S.
government’s cross-border payments, is intimately
familiar with the government’s operating procedures,
guidelines and various technology systems.
Consequently, our solution is compliant with all federal
data security systems and meets, for example, all of the
GSA’s pre- and post-audit requirements. GSA Audit
considers Citi Integrated Freight Processing an approved
system for pre-audit.
Business intelligence that drives supply chain optimization and cost savings
Citi Integrated Freight Processing is a commercial-grade,
off-the-shelf solution that speeds and improves the
entire freight pay and audit life cycle. What’s more, it
generates actionable logistics and expense data so that
you can gain even more control over your transportation
budgets and forecasts.
Citi Integrated Freight Processing puts at your fingertips
a wealth of business intelligence to help you achieve:
• Supply chain network optimization
• Procurement efficiencies
• Load consolidations
• Cost savings
• Transportation service provider management
In addition, our solution is easy to implement, can be
customized to meet your organization’s specific needs
and integrates with existing transportation management
and enterprise resource planning systems.
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Citi. Providing a powerful combination of
government experience, technological know-how
and global transaction management capabilities.
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Citi understands the demands that government agencies
face on a daily basis to deliver their services more
efficiently and cost effectively. What’s more, we have a
proven track record of delivering services and insights
to federal operations around the world that cut costs,
add value and deliver results.
Today, for example, we are a leading transaction
services provider to the U.S. Treasury Department,
the Department of State and the General Services
Administration. In fact, we handle 90 percent of the
federal government’s cross-border payments, supporting
50 agencies in 100 countries. We also are the primary
freight invoicing and payment services provider
for the GSA Office of Transportation Management.
The GSA program processes over 100,000 freight
and household goods transactions and 20 million
small-parcel transactions, providing federal agencies
with access to 1,800 transportation service providers.
Receive dedicated service and support
From preimplementation planning to post-
implementation support, our dedicated team of
U.S. government specialists will ensure that your
solution is up and running as quickly as possible
and that your staff makes the most of its new tools
and processes.
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Partner with a trusted advisor and proven U.S. government service provider
As a trusted advisor to the U.S. government for some
of its most complex and demanding transaction and
financial management needs, Citi can bring new levels
of efficiency and performance to your operations.
When you choose Citi to process your transportation-
related financial transactions, you’re partnering with a
provider that offers:
• Unrivaled global reach and on-the-ground presence
in more than 100 countries
• Domestic and cross-border payment capabilities in
180 countries and in over 130 currencies
• Membership in 202 clearing networks and payments
systems worldwide
• Cross-border ACH payments capabilities in
47 countries and 15 currencies
• Customer service in 22 languages
• Today’s most advanced and comprehensive
transportation payment processing platform
Learn more
For a demonstration of, or more information about, Citi Integrated Freight Processing, contact your Citi account representative or visit our website at
www.transactionservices.citigroup.com
Enhance the efficiency, reliability and
cost-effectiveness of your transportation-related
payments — and gain more control over them.
Citi Integrated Freight Processing