Innovation takes the lead into the fast-growing global BNPL market in H2 2023

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The uncertain economic conditions and inflationary pressures have prompted consumers to delay their purchase payments by leveraging buy now pay later (BNPL) schemes. The growing user base is, therefore, leading to the launch of new and innovative products catering to the needs of different demographics.

Juni, in June 2023, announced that the firm is introducing a new product Juni Invoices, which revolves around the concept of buy media pay later. The deferred payment solution is designed to streamline the handling of media invoices for e-commerce businesses. This will subsequently help the firm in attracting more customers. Juni Invoices will enable online retailers to choose between 30, 60, and 90 extra days to make media-related payments. With a major portion of the revenue getting spent on advertisement, Juni Invoices will enable businesses to better manage their finances to accelerate growth.

• According to Juni, the firm’s European customers spent 63.5% of their total budget on advertisement in Q1 2023. As a result, PayNXT360 expects a high adoption rate for Juni Invoices in the European market from the short to medium-term perspective, accelerating the business growth.

Juni Invoices is programmed for auto-collecting and scanning invoices through Google and Facebook Ads integration. The system has been designed to auto match each invoice with the respective transaction, which can potentially reduce the processing time substantially. The firm is focused on solving the major pain points faced by its customers. Consequently, going forward, PayNXT360 expects the firm to add more features to Juni Invoices, including inventory financing and automations. This will further create value for customers, thereby driving the adoption of the BNPL-like product.

Sezzle, one of the leading players in the fast-growing BNPL market, has announced the launch of its new and innovative Pay-in-2 product in May 2023. Using the service, shoppers will have to pay 50% of the total value at the time of purchase, while the remaining can be paid over the next two week.

• The launch of the new product is aimed at offering more choices to consumers, while also expanding the firm’s presence in different categories. Sezzle is broadening its presence with the introduction of Pay-in-2, enabling the firm to extend its reach into sectors like groceries, monthly subscriptions, and other frequent-use categories.

Alongside Pay-in-2, Sezzle also provides its users with the ability to Pay-in-4 over a period of six weeks. Furthermore, users can also opt to make monthly repayments in up to 48 months. The firm is also the only provider to offer such payment options in the North American region. The Pay-in-2 feature will also enable consumers to build up their credit score, if they chose to opt-in for Sezzle Up. The product is targeted towards shoppers that get paid every two weeks.

Sezzle, in June 2023, announced the launch of a subscription offering for instalment payments. The new, Sezzle Pay Anywhere, will enable shoppers to make use of the virtual card online, in-store, and wherever Visa is accepted. Such innovative products are projected to aid the gross merchandise value growth for Sezzle from the short to medium-term perspective. Going forward, the firm has announced an increased focus on product innovation and partnerships to drive the growth of its top-line.

To differentiate their product offering, BNPL providers are also enabling customers to buy products at zero upfront costs. The business model is expected to gain widespread traction from the short-term perspective, as inflation and subsequent surge in cost of living is dampening consumer’s disposable income.

Safaricom, which launched Faraja in the Kenyan market, has opted for an innovative business model to make the service attractive among shoppers that reeling under the impact of rising inflation and subsequent surge in product prices.

• Faraja, notably, promises to deliver the products to Kenyan shoppers without a down payment. The business model is quite different compared to other major providers like Klarna and Afterpay, which requires customers to pay a part of the total purchase value upfront.

In addition to this, Faraja does not charge any interest rate on the short-term loans extended to borrowers in Kenya. Safaricom and EDOMx, the firms that have launched Faraja in Kenya, have partnered with merchants. EDOMx will pay for customers purchases upfront, while getting the product at a discounted price from the merchant.

Customers, on the other hand, have a 30-day, interest-free period to pay for their purchases. The customer, however, pays back the actual market cost of the product and the discounted cost. The difference is the revenue for EDOMx.

With the rising competitive landscape and higher adoption of the payment solution, PayNXT360 expects more innovation in the sector from the short to medium-term perspective.