Ingenico and Splitit partner to bring BNPL to the in-store checkouts. Klarna’s new “Money Story” will give users a 360 view of spending habits. Affirm’s Amazon exclusivity agreement expires as analysts watch for possible impact on both companies. The NYTimes profiles Goldman’s GreenSky pain as division losses reach $1.66 billion despite revenue growth. Germany’s Tilta sees B2B BNPL as a boon to the SMB credit and cash flow crunch.
Apple Pay Later is testing with Apple employees while getting ready for launch “soon.” UK retailer Frasers Group readies its BNPL credit offer together with Tymit. The NZ government has BNPL regulations out for public comment now. Digital-savvy Zillennials are looking for more in-store payment options, while a CBS News feature looks at the sometimes painful pitfalls of BNPL debt. Ballooning debt? Time will tell.
Ingenico and Splitit partner to bring white-label buy now, pay later to physical checkout with just one touch
Ingenico and Splitit, the only white-label, card-based installment platform using existing consumer credit, announced a global strategic partnership to bring one-touch, no-interest, buy now pay later capability to the physical checkout experience using PPaaS, Ingenico’s innovative, cloud-based Payments-Platform-as-a-Service, and Splitit’s Installments-as-a-Service solution. Juniper Research says BNPL users will surpass 900 million globally by 2027, increasing from 360 million in 2022. Cision
Fintechs drive consumer financial well-being with enhanced spend visibility
Klarna’s new “Money Story” highlights the importance of reviewing spending patterns. The new feature works like a Spotify-style year in review, but instead of showing users the songs they listened to, it shows where they spent the most money, all packaged into the social media-friendly story format. BNPL’s online usage far outweighed its in-store equivalent across all retail segments, including among consumers who made luxury and specialty store purchases. PYMNTS
Is Affirm out as Amazon’s sole BNPL provider?
An exclusivity provision between the two companies has lapsed as the buy now, pay later arena becomes more competitive. Amazon appears to be leaving its options open to buy now, pay later services, and let an exclusivity commitment with Affirm expire Tuesday. Although the two companies have a commercial agreement that runs through Jan 31, 2025 – and can be extended for successive one-year terms at that point – Jan 31 marked the end of BNPL provider Affirm having a claim as the sole installment loan provider for Amazon’s customers. PaymentsDive
‘Buy now, pay later’ is the victim of its own success
What once seemed like attractive economics have been upended by increasing competition and rising interest rates. In March, Goldman closed its $2.2 billion acquisition of GreenSky, a pioneer in the BNPL lending sector, calling it a key piece in its strategy to build “the consumer banking platform of the future.” It flew under the radar until last quarter, the first in which Goldman broke out earnings for its “platform solutions” business unit, which includes GreenSky. The picture wasn’t pretty. Revenues were up, but the division lost $1.66 billion in 2022. New York Times
Tilta’s Ingmar Stupp: Navigating the financial storm with buy now, pay later
Tilta’s CEO, Ingmar Stupp, shares his insights on how the BNPL industry impacts the current financial crisis. As one of the leading figures in the BNPL industry, Stupp explains how businesses push payment delays up and down the supply chain and how BNPL offers a solution for working capital for companies. He discusses the challenges and opportunities presented by the current economic climate and explains how Tilta is leveraging BNPL to help its customers. Fintech Finance News
Apple to launch BNPL feature
Apple announced that its BNPL solution is in beta testing among Apple employees and is set to be soon available to the public in the US. Apple Pay Later was initially announced at the Worldwide Developers Conference 2022 as a feature of iOS 16 to enable customers to pay in installments by having the option selected in the Wallet app when purchasing with Apple Pay. The feature was to be introduced late in 2022 but was delayed. Apple CEO Tim Cook has confirmed that Apple Pay Later will launch soon. The Paypers
Ashley’s Frasers Group set to roll out buy-now-pay-later product
According to reports, Billionaire Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is finalizing a move to roll out its own buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) scheme, allowing shoppers to borrow up to £2,000. The new payments product is set to form part of a range of new financial products called Frasers Plus. Under the new offer, shoppers can split and defer payments or take a loan through the group’s app that can be spent across its retailers, which include Sports Direct, House of Fraser, Jack Wills and Sofa.com. CITY A.M.
Submissions on new BNPL Regulatory landscape in New Zealand
In November 2022, the Government and the Ministry of Business and Innovation (MBIE) announced upcoming changes to the regulation of BNPL. This announcement said BNPL products would be brought within the scope of the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003 (CCCFA) and the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Regulation 2003 (Regulations). On Dec 19, MBIE released a consultation paper and draft regulations on this policy, including a $600 exemption level. Submissions close on Feb 24, 2023. Lexology
Zillennials want in-store access to online payment methods
Go figure: One of the most digitally connected demographics also prefers in-store retail purchases. Per PYMNTS’ “ConnectedEconomy™ Report: Meet the Zillennials,” this bridge generation is, on average, over twice as digitally connected as baby boomers and 36% more than Gen X. Which is why it may be surprising that when it comes to overall retail, Zillennials prefer in-store purchases more than their millennial counterparts. PYMNTS
“Buy now, pay later” programs make it easy to rack up debt fast
For online shoppers, the appeal of “buy now, pay later” programs seems obvious. If paid on time, the loans are zero interest, with smaller payments spread out in installments. And unlike layaway, shoppers get their purchases immediately. But that ease of buying can add up fast. Forty-three percent of Americans have used “buy now, pay later” services, according to a Lending Tree survey. CBS Evening News
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