The rapid growth of buy now, pay later is extending well beyond domestic markets, as providers expand their reach to support cross-border e-commerce. Afterpay’s latest initiative enables merchants to offer installment payments to international shoppers across several major markets, helping retailers tap into growing global demand while giving consumers more flexible ways to pay.
As cross-border payments and online shopping continue to accelerate, merchants are increasingly looking for payment solutions that simplify international sales. By combining localized shopping experiences with cross-border e-commerce capabilities and installment payments, BNPL providers are making global expansion more accessible than ever.
Buy now-pay later (BNPL) continues to cross global regions. Afterpay will expand its installment payment plan for cross border sales among Australia, New Zealand, the UK, and Canada.
The U.S. market will be open for merchant cross-selling in 2021 as well. As international e-commerce grows, this is a logical step to align a popular payment method for merchants and consumers alike.
The following excerpt from a The Paypers article reports more on the topic:
Afterpay has announced that its merchant partners can now offer their products to customers across the world. Shoppers will see items in their local currency and benefit from the flexibility and convenience of paying in four instalments over time, without incurring interest, fees, or revolving and extended debt. Participating retailers can open their store fronts to these shoppers without paying set up or currency conversion fees.
Overall, Afterpay first introduced cross border shopping in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) in March 2019, which delivered YoY sales growth of nearly 576%. Because of such strong consumer demand, the number of ANZ merchants that are now selling outside their home country has grown 10 times.
“Cross border trade allows retailers to open their storefronts to the world – delivering new customers, higher conversion and ultimately more merchant sales, without additional set-up costs or fees,” said Nick Molnar, Afterpay’s Co-founder and CEO of North America. “We are particularly excited to offer cross border capabilities at a time when consumers are buying online more than ever and in advance of this busy holiday shopping season.”
Afterpay’s expansion demonstrates how BNPL is evolving into a global payments solution rather than a regional financing option. Giving merchants the ability to reach international customers without added complexity can help drive sales while meeting consumers’ expectations for flexible payment options.
As international online commerce continues to grow, integrating buy now, pay later into cross-border shopping experiences will become an increasingly important competitive advantage for merchants worldwide.
Overview by Raymond Pucci, Director, Merchant Services at Mercator Advisory Group
