Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) is having a moment in fintech. And one of the leading players in the space is expanding its innovations into the offline realm.
Minnesota-based Sezzle unveiled its virtual payments card this week, helping users benefit from its BNPL technology during their in-store shopping trips. The company has partnered with card issuing platform Marqeta to power its new virtual card.
Sezzle virtual cardholders will be able to use Sezzle’s installment payments technology in-store at retailers that already accept Apple Pay and Google Pay, as well as online. The purchases are interest-free and can be split into four installments, paid out over six weeks.
“As traditional, in-store retail re-emerges, it’s critical that we support our merchant partners by giving them new tools to jump-start sales, both online and in-store,” said Sezzle Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Killian Brackey. “As a proven solution for driving incremental sales and new customer growth, we are thrilled to publicly announce an easy way for U.S. retailers to offer Buy Now, Pay Later in store.”
The in-store user experience is simple. At checkout, consumers authenticate themselves and tap their phone at the point-of-sale terminal, which will activate their Sezzle card.
Sezzle’s news comes on the heels of PayPal’s announcement that it plans to add a BNPL competitor. The payments giant revealed on Monday the launch of Pay in 4, a short-term payments installment product for U.S. customers.
Four-year-old Sezzle, which listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) last summer, has seen a recent uptick in adoption, spurred by the economic effects of the coronavirus. The company added 325,000 new users in the second quarter of this year, up 326% from the same period last year. Sezzle has a market capitalization of $848 million.
Photo by Pat Farrell on Unsplash
MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sezzle, Inc. (ASX:SZL), leading US-based installment payments platform, today announced the release of its virtual card for shoppers, enabling millions of Sezzle customers to pay using interest-free installments both in-store and online. The Sezzle Virtual Card will allow brick and mortar retailers that already support Apple Pay and Google Pay an easy way to offer Sezzle's Buy Now, Pay Later solution to their customers.
The Sezzle Virtual Card, powered by Marqeta, is launching on both Apple Pay and Google Pay, offering immediate merchant benefits with effortless integration. Just as Sezzle users are able to do online, the Virtual Card will allow merchants to give their customers a more flexible way to pay for in-store transactions by providing them the opportunity to split their purchases into four, interest-free installments paid out over six weeks.
In uncertain economic times, consumers -- particularly millennial and Gen-Z shoppers -- are seeking out and giving their business to merchants across all sectors that offer Buy Now, Pay Later solutions at check out. Nationally recognized generational expert Jason Dorsey has predicted that by 2023, 95% of all retailers will be offering installment payments at checkout.
Merchants enrolling in the program can expect to have the service up and running within hours of setting up an account with Sezzle. For merchants offering Sezzle's solution, the consumer experience is seamless. At checkout, shoppers simply tap their phone at the point-of-sale terminal, which activates the Sezzle card in their mobile wallet, powered through Sezzle's partnership with global card issuing platform Marqeta.
"As traditional, in-store retail re-emerges, it's critical that we support our merchant partners by giving them new tools to jump-start sales, both online and in-store," said Killian Brackey, a Sezzle co-founder, and Chief Technology Officer. "As a proven solution for driving incremental sales and new customer growth, we are thrilled to publicly announce an easy way for U.S retailers to offer Buy Now, Pay Later in store."
By using Sezzle, retailers immediately position themselves to attract a growing segment of the population that prefers to pay overtime without incurring interest-bearing debt or fees. Within hours of launching Sezzle at checkout, merchants see immediate increases in conversion rates, average basket sizes, and customer satisfaction. Over time, retailers see improvements in both the rate of repeat customers and rate of repurchase among existing customers. In recent head-to-head competitions with other installments-based solutions, Sezzle came out on top, with customers citing Sezzle's "overall performance, superior technology, focus on young consumers, and user experience" as differentiating factors in their decision to select Sezzle.
With a growing need for budgeting amid widespread economic uncertainty, Sezzle has seen a rapid pick up in shopper adoption, adding 325,000 new users, registering 326% year-over-year growth in Q2 2020.
Apple Pay is an easy, safe, and secure way for customers to pay in millions of places, in stores, in apps and online with the Apple devices they use every day. Every Apple Pay purchase is authenticated using Face ID or Touch ID, or a device's passcode.
Google Pay is a fast, simple way to pay using a smartphone to speed through checkout within apps and websites. It is universally accepted at the POS wherever the contactless payments are accepted. Customer payment information is protected with multiple layers of security, including tokenization, so customers can pay with peace of mind – all the time.
For more information on Sezzle for Apple Pay and Google Pay, visit: //dashboard.sezzle.com/merchant/signup
For more information on Apple Pay, visit: //www.apple.com/apple-pay/.
For more information on Google Pay, visit: //pay.google.com/about/
Follow Sezzle on social media: LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook| Twitter
About Sezzle Inc.
Sezzle is a rapidly growing fintech company on a mission to financially empower the next generation. Sezzle's payment platform increases the purchasing power for nearly 1.5 million Active Users across the U.S. and Canada by offering interest-free installment
plans at online stores and select in-store locations. Sezzle's transparent, inclusive, and seamless payment option allows consumers to take control over their spending, be more responsible, and gain access to financial freedom. When consumers apply, approval is instant, and their credit scores are not negatively impacted.
This increase in purchasing power for consumers leads to increased sales and basket sizes for the more than 16,000 Active Merchants that offer Sezzle in the U.S. and Canada.
For more information visit sezzle.com.
Sezzle's CDIs are issued in reliance on the exemption from registration contained in Regulation S of the US Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act) for offers of securities which are made outside the US. Accordingly, the CDIs, have not been, and will not be, registered under the Securities Act or the laws of any state or other jurisdiction in the US. As a result of relying on the Regulation S exemption, the CDIs are 'restricted securities' under Rule 144 of the Securities Act. This means that you are unable to sell the CDIs into the US or to a US person who is not a QIB for the foreseeable future except in very limited circumstances until after the end of the restricted period, unless the re-sale of the CDIs is registered under the Securities Act or an exemption is available. To enforce the above transfer restrictions, all CDIs issued bear a FOR Financial Product designation on the ASX. This designation restricts any CDIs from being sold on ASX to US persons excluding QIBs. However, you are still able to freely transfer your CDIs on ASX to any person other than a US person who is not a QIB. In addition, hedging transactions with regard to the CDIs may only be conducted in accordance with the Securities Act.
If you are interested in learning more about Sezzle consumer habits and buying patterns amid COVID-19, contact Sezzle media.
SOURCE Sezzle
Related Links
//sezzle.com