Toronto-based BMO Financial Group expects its plannedacquisition of the Diners Club North American franchise fromCitigroup, which gives it exclusive rights to issue the travel andentertainment expense cards to U.S. and Canadian corporatecustomers, will add about $7.8 billion in transactions to itsT&E and purchasing card business.

While BMO already had a T&E card program, Diners Club'sworldwide franchise system will make it easy for BMO to set upaccounts for global corporations and service customers in countriesaround the world, says Terry Wellesley, managing director for BMOSpend & Payment Solutions in North America.

Wellesley cites the Diners Club rewards program as anotherattraction, as well as the data Diners Club can provide tocustomers about their transactions. “In the Diners system, they canconsolidate information about transactions anywhere in the worldand get it broken down any way, shape or form,” he says.

BMO, currently the seventh biggest corporate card provider inNorth America, expects the Diners Club acquisition to boost it tofifth place, and Wellesley sees opportunity in the middle market.While T&E expense cards are common at bigger companies, “thereare a lot of midsized companies that don't have a mandatedcorporate card program,” he says, adding that the economic downturnis increasing companies' interest in controlling T&E spending.“There's a belt tightening across the board on any spend, butprobably more on the T&E side,” Wellesley says. “It is probablythe second or third biggest controllable expense at mostcompanies.”

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition,which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close bythe end of the first quarter.