When a consumer walks into a store or scrolls through an online catalog, a moment of hesitation often intervenes: “Do I buy it now, or risk lingering doubts about whether I can afford it later?”
Seamlessly embedding financing at the point of sale (POS) short-circuits that hesitation, making the transaction feel natural and reducing the mental friction between “I want it” and “I’ll do it.”
Why Point-of-Sale Financing Matters
Merchants increasingly recognize that the checkout is a tipping point. If customers can’t access a suitable credit option right then and there, they may abandon carts — or downgrade purchases. According to PYMNTS Intelligence, when a consumer’s preferred credit option isn’t available at checkout, roughly one-third say they’ll skip the purchase altogether, and another third will scramble to find a different credit mode mid-transaction.
In an era of tight household budgets and unpredictable cash flow, offering flexible credit at the moment of decision can tip the balance. PYMNTS Intelligence research shows consumers experiencing cash flow gaps are 3.5× more likely to use buy now, pay later (BNPL) options to bridge shortfalls.
Moreover, merchants that embrace alternative payments such as BNPL report uplift: 97% of small merchants that add BNPL or digital wallet methods see increased eCommerce sales.
Thus, offering integrated financing isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s increasingly a required capability to compete.
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The Synchrony-Versatile Credit Deal
Synchrony on Thursday (Oct. 2) unveiled its acquisition of Versatile Credit’s consumer financing software platform. Versatile acts as a connective layer, linking merchants, a portfolio of lenders, and consumers to offer point-of-sale credit in multiple forms — spanning prime, secondary and tertiary lenders depending on the consumer’s risk profile.
The rationale: Synchrony can now host a multi-lender marketplace within its tent, embedding Versatile’s underwriting engine and merchant integrations. Versatile’s existing relationships in verticals like furniture, home improvement, elective medical, automotive and jewelry give Synchrony instant exposure to merchants outside its traditional store-card footprint.
Broader Data Expands Access
The deal spotlights a growing reliance on alternative data — that is, consumer-permissioned data beyond traditional credit scores (e.g. utility payments, rental history, account-level cash flows, device signals, merchant transaction histories). A 2025 PYMNTS analysis observes that roughly 80 million U.S. consumers lack reliable access to credit, and incorporating alternative data such as rent or utility payments into scoring models can unlock opportunities for them.
By capturing behavioral signals and transaction-level detail at the point of sale, platforms (including Versatile’s) can calibrate risk more finely. They can extend financing to consumers who might not pass a vanilla credit score filter, offering smaller lines, shorter-term installment plans or promotional zero-interest windows. Some lenders may still underwrite conservatively, but the collaboration across multiple lenders via Versatile allows dynamic routing of approvals.
Beyond Versatile, the broader industry is embracing this approach. FICO is launching credit scores that incorporate BNPL data to better reflect repayment behavior in this rising category. Likewise, BNPL providers are progressively furnishing their data to credit bureaus, allowing the repayment histories of installment plans to influence consumer credit profiles.
Platforms like Splitit are enabling in-store installment pay-later options embedded in merchant point-of-sale workflows. For example, Samsung Wallet recently launched a feature that lets users pay via installment with existing credit at in-store POS, bridging the gap between digital wallets and embedded financing.
Fragmentation is giving way to consolidation. Banks and large financial institutions are increasingly embedding pay-later options directly into checkout flows through partnerships or acquisitions, reducing reliance on stand-alone FinTechs.
From Synchrony’s vantage point, the Versatile buy extends reach, acquiring new merchant relationships and future-proofing issuance. Versatile gives Synchrony modular underwriting, merchant connectivity and a marketplace of lenders.
Legacy players are moving toward becoming credit access platform providers, enabling a spectrum of financing options (BNPL, installment, promotional interest-free, revolving lines) across merchant networks. That shifts part of the value proposition from cost of funds and credit underwriting to platform models that capture the promise of embedded finance and expand credit access.
