Akulaku, Indonesia-based digital banking and payments platform, has launched its BNPL platform, Akulaku PayLater. BNPL or Buy Now Pay Later is a kind of financial service that offers loans to banking users for a short period but with little or no interest.
Along with the launch of the BNPL platform, Akulaku is collaborating with more than 4 000 stores and platforms throughout Southeast Asia that comprises names like Tiket, Cinema XXI, Bukalapak, and JD.ID.
The launch of the new credit service has taken place as the rate of credit card penetration in Southeast Asia stays low. As such, Akulaku comes with an accessible and easy credit option for customers. The company can offer lines of credit to those who are unable to access traditional finance by leveraging machine learning (ML). The technology will guide users for effective lending decisions and also helps track fraud.
The launch of Akulaku PayLater took place earlier this year and rapidly turned out as an essential digital product to help consumers make better financial management, allowing people who have no or little credit history to access goods they used to leave, and pay in a controlled way (increments) over time. The BNPL product of Akulaku is standing tall on the increasing demands for flexible payment plans and installment purchasing.
Fan Zhang, CFO, Akulaku, stated, “Indonesia’s BNPL sector has a strong future. As countries in Southeast Asia continue to recover post-COVID-19 lockdowns, the overall credit market will continue to grow at an expedited rate. Akulaku is committed to innovation through enhancing our core tech and risk capabilities, as well as by developing additional technological and financial products and services. We plan to expand our partnerships with merchants both online and offline in the coming years.”
Currently, the company is eyeing expanding access to the instant checkout feature with BNPL, as this feature enhances the success rate of payments and offers advantages to the bottom line for Indonesian vendors.
