Credit card alternative Affirm has scored an exclusive deal with e-commerce marketplace Shopify to provide buy now, pay later installment purchases for merchants.
At checkout, approved 'Shop Pay' customers will be able to split their total spending into four equal, bi-weekly, interest-free payments. Merchants who join the scheme will get payments upfront - less fees - and Affirm will handle collection.
Max Levchin, founder and CEO of Affirm, says merchants who offer consumers a similar pay-over-time option today see an increase in average order value and overall sales.
“With the acceleration of online spending, many small businesses must reinvent themselves," he says. “By partnering with Shopify, the gold standard of commerce platforms for businesses that want to sell direct-to-consumers, we can help merchants seamlessly enable a pay-over-time option at checkout. In doing so, we’re helping them reach new customers, particularly Gen Z and Millennials, who are looking for more transparent and flexible ways to pay.”
Affirm and Shopify will begin testing in the coming months, with Shop Pay Installments expected to be made available to eligible US merchants starting later this year.