PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) announced today a new buy now – pay later (BNPL) offering “PayPal Monthly.” The expanded credit offering arrives just after Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) announced Apple Pay Later, a BNPL that allows users to easily pay for a purchase with 4 payments during a 6 week period without any fees or interest charges.
PayPal Monthly allows consumers to pay over a longer period of time choosing a 6 to 24-month period, with the first payment due one month after purchase. An individual may use the service with purchases from $199 to $10,000.
Similar to Apple Pay Later, the option is provided at the point of sale within the PayPal payment process including an application and approval at checkout . PayPal says it offer up to three different plans of varying lengths with an APR ranging from 0%-29.99%.
Greg Lisiewski, Vice President of Shopping and Pay Later at PayPal, explains, “Pay Monthly builds on our commitment to deliver leading payment solutions that offer customers choice to ensure checkout matches their needs and budgeting preferences.”
While the PayPal service allows a consumer to select more options including a 2-year payment period – far beyond what Apple will offer, expectations are that over time the mega-tech firm will add more credit options. Apple can benefit from its extensive install base of more than one billion iPhones – along with strong anti-fraud features baked into the hardware.
PayPal’s BNPL offering is in partnership with WebBank.