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In a sign of Afterpay's (ASX: APT) growing success in the United States the buy-now pay-later (BNPL) giant has linked up with Apple Pay and Google Pay for in-store payments.
The deals will allow Afterpay's users in the US to buy items in-store simply by tapping their Apple or Android phones at the POS terminal, removing yet another layer of friction for the BNPL company's customers.
On Apple devices the service will work via the Apple Wallet app, meaning access to an Afterpay account is simply a glance, a fingerprint or a passcode away.
For Android users the option will be available by tapping their phone at the POS terminal.
Both the Apple Pay and Google Pay services are expected to be available in US retail stores sometime this month. Afterpay says the Apple Pay service will be available to Australian customers later this year.
"As we enter the second half of the year and retail re-emerges across the world, it's critical we help our partners drive business growth, both online and offline," says Afterpay co-founder and US CEO Nicholas Molnar.
"As a proven solution for driving incremental sales and new customer growth, we are thrilled to introduce our new omni-channel solution to US retailers as they begin to open their doors and bring shoppers back to their physical stores."
Afterpay's in-store solution has been a key component of its business model since 2016, and at the end of the 2019 calendar year it represented approximately 24 per cent of total ANZ underlying sales.
The company says retailers that offer Afterpay access a growing segment of the consumer population who prefer to pay without incurring traditional debt, interest or fees.
As such, Afterpay says retailers that offer the BNPL option see an average increased conversion of approximately 22 per cent, as well as increased basket size, higher customer satisfaction and repeat customers.
"Afterpay and Google Pay give shoppers the ability to choose either physical or online shopping while still being able to budget their own money and avoid expensive loans, interest and fees which has shown to attract new customers and drive more sales conversion for our retail partners," says Molnar.
"We are thrilled to partner with Google to make shopping and paying in-store convenient, secure and contactless."
Afterpay recently completed a $650 million institutional placement, designed to boost the company as it rides significant FY20 sales growth during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company's founders Anthony Eisen and Nicholas Molnar also decided to sell down 2.05 million shares each, representing 10 per cent of their respective holdings in Afterpay.
Openpay pens agreement with 1st Group
BNPL competitor Openpay (ASX: OPY) has also announced an important deal today, signing a new revenue sharing agreement with digital health services provider 1st Group (ASX: 1ST).
The agreement provides for Openpay's BNPL payment option to be included in the MyHealth1st platform by practices that offer this service to their patients.
Openpay will also market the MyHealth1st platform to existing healthcare practices within its merchant network.
"BNPL payment options are increasingly being offered by Pharmacy, Optometry, Dental and Veterinary businesses, the very markets in which 1st Group is a leader," says Openpay.
Founded in 2013, Openpay is a BNPL service that allows users to spread out the costs of interest free payments over up to 24 months. While the company does operate in similar segments to competitors Afterpay and Zip with retail partners like Nike and Smiggle, the company has expanded more into the health & wellbeing space with merchants including Bupa Dental and a variety of local healthcare providers.
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