ryd and Mastercard have launched ryd fleet, a digital payment operating system for fleet operators across Europe.
The product offers a fully digital, tokenised fleet card that allows drivers to pay for fleet-related expenses (including fuel, electric vehicle charging, and vehicle washing) directly through a smartphone app or via a vehicle's infotainment system, wherever Mastercard is accepted across Europe. At the point of use, the app also captures receipts, odometer readings, and trip details, reducing reliance on paper documentation and manual reconciliation processes.
Controls and visibility for fleet managers
For fleet managers, ryd fleet provides near real-time transaction data alongside tools to set spend limits by category, driver, or vehicle. The system automates a number of administrative processes currently handled manually, with the aim of reducing overhead and improving expense oversight.
The launch marks a significant expansion for ryd, which has until now operated primarily in the consumer market. In addition, Mastercard brings to the collaboration more than two decades of experience in fleet payment solutions, supporting operators ranging from small and medium-sized enterprises to large logistics companies. The partnership draws on Mastercard's commercial card infrastructure, applying virtual card capabilities to the fleet context to enable tokenised, app-based transactions at scale.
Industry context
Fleet payment systems in Europe have historically relied on physical cards, fragmented acceptance networks, and manual expense reporting, a model that has remained largely unchanged despite broader digitisation across financial services. The shift towards software-defined vehicles and integrated in-car payment experiences is creating demand for fleet management tools that are natively digital and capable of capturing granular transaction data.
ryd fleet addresses this by positioning the smartphone app and vehicle infotainment system as the primary payment interfaces, removing the physical card from the transaction flow entirely. The approach aligns with a broader industry direction in which fleet operators seek tighter integration between mobility data and financial controls.
The company also noted that the collaboration is intended to establish ryd as a central standard for in-car payments as the automotive industry moves towards software-defined vehicles, with fleet operators and drivers positioned at the centre of the product design.
The product is available to fleet operators across Europe at launch, with acceptance tied to Mastercard's existing network footprint on the continent.
