Zilla Pauses BNPL Services, Focuses on International B2B Payments

Zilla has paused its buy now, pay later (BNPL) services in Nigeria and shifted its focus to a new international B2B payment product called Zillawire.

The company paused its BNPL offering because of high interest rates and other challenges facing all consumer-facing products in the country, Zilla CEO Tolu Abiodun told PYMNTS Tuesday (Jan. 23).

“People have less to spend, and that automatically increases the credit risk,” Abiodun said.

Zilla’s BNPL program was rapidly adopted by both merchants and consumers, and it had participation from merchants across several verticals, Abiodun said.

However, aiming to be profitable from day one, rather than relying too much on investors, the company paused the program, Abiodun said. Zilla aims to restart the program soon, and the company is now looking for collaborators who can use its technology.

In light of the macroeconomic challenges facing consumer products in Nigeria, Zilla has shifted its focus to international B2B payments with Zillawire.

Zillawire is a product that aims to enable businesses to make payments to suppliers and partners in international markets.

“One thing that always was a problem for merchants that had to import product was the friction that existed with making international payments,” Abiodun said. “We felt that might be an opportunity for us to conquer.”

Zillawire enables businesses to fund their Naira wallets and transact with international suppliers using foreign currency, according to the company’s website. It includes favorable rates, a transparent fee structure, swift transaction processing and risk management tools that protect customers from currency fluctuations.

The B2B product was launched in private beta in September and is now processing $10 million per month, Abiodun said. Zilla is now preparing to launch this product publicly in Nigeria.

Zilla describes itself on its LinkedIn page as “an innovative company helping Africans to live their best life today through affordable and accessible financial services that work.”

In another recent development in the B2B space, Nukkleus said Monday that it has partnered with Tantel Group to expand its footprint in Africa, tap into the continent’s $1.5 trillion B2B payments market and address the challenges of cross-border payments.

This collaboration aims to combine the technology of Nukkleus’ subsidiary Digital RFQ (DFRQ) with Tantel Group’s local expertise.