Users paying at POS with Apple Pay or Google Pay can activate the Sezzle virtual Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) card through their phones.

Sezzle Inc (ASX: SZL), the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) platform, announced Wednesday that its customers can now use the Sezzle Virtual Card to convert their purchases at brick-and-mortar stores into easy installments. They may also use the Card online. (Finovate)

With the economic hardships arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more American consumers have had to max out their credit cards. In these difficult circumstances, a BNPL solution that allows payment in installments can be a lifesaver. The fintech allows a purchase to be paid in four equal installments, interest-free, over six weeks.

BNPL schemes from various providers have become immensely popular over recent months, and threaten to disrupt credit cards.

“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,” Sezzle said in a statement.

Sezzle’s Virtual Card

Marqeta, the global card issuer processor platform, powers the Virtual Card. The Card primarily targets shoppers and merchants at physical stores.

Brick-and-mortar retailers that already support Apple Pay and Google Pay can now offer shoppers the facility to use their Virtual Card for converting their purchase into installments.

“Customers can now sign up for a virtual card on the Sezzle App, which can be used on both Apple Pay and Google Pay as well as online,” the company says. “By launching the Sezzle Virtual Card on Apple Pay and Google Pay, we are creating a no-hassle technical integration for participating retailers in the U.S.”

Therefore, at checkout in a Sezzle-linked store, the consumer can authenticate themselves and tap their phone at the POS terminal. This will activate their Virtual Card in their mobile wallet.

Useful facility for merchants

“By using Sezzle, retailers immediately position themselves to attract a growing segment of the population that prefers to pay over time without incurring interest-bearing debt or fees,” claims the company.

“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 the rate of repurchase among existing customers.”

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