(19 August 2019 – Australia) Citi Australia is entering the buy now, pay later market with a partnership with online retailer Kogan.com that allows existing credit card holders to take out installment loans at the point of sale.
The new instalment loan product will initially charge customers a flat fee instead of interest.
The announcement comes after CBA this month said it would invest US$100 million in Klarna, a rival to AfterPay in the US market, with the bank being Klarna’s exclusive partners in Australia.
Visa also announced in June it was joining the buy now, pay later market with an instalment payments product in development.
Citi's head of cards and loans, Choong Yu Lum, highlighted the “rapid” growth in this sector, and said the bank planned to roll out the offering to a wider range of retailers.
Under Citi's offering, customers will be able to pay back the loan over terms of 3 months, one year, 18 months or two years.