BNPL Network Affirm to Let Customers Pay Now

Although it’s chiefly known as a buy now, pay later (BNPL) network, Affirm has rolled out updates to its app that essentially lets customers buy now, pay now.

Announced on Wednesday (Dec. 8), the company’s Cash Back Rewards program gives customers the option to pay for purchases upfront, while earning rewards in the process.

“With the average consumer planning to spend nearly $650 on gifts this holiday season, we’re excited to offer a way for shoppers to earn while they spend,” Greg Fisher, chief marketing officer at Affirm, said in a news release. “Now whether consumers want to pay in full and earn cash back or pay later by choosing a schedule that’s best for them, Affirm can offer that choice and flexibility. Giving consumers the opportunity to earn rewards also increases engagement. Three in four consumers who used Affirm Cash Back in our pilot said they were interested in making a second transaction.”

The program lets customers automatically recoup a percentage of every eligible purchase in rewards. Those rewards can then be traded for cash or deposited to an Affirm savings account.

Customers can access the program by going to the Affirm app and clicking “Unlock” on a participating merchant’s page. Rewards become available within 30 to 90 days. Customers must open an Affirm savings account – assuming they don’t already have one – within 30 days to receive cash back.

Read more: Affirm President Says Consumers Turn to BNPL for More Flexibility, Transparency

PYMNTS spoke to Affirm’s President of Technology Libor Michalek in November about the rise of BNPL. According to PYMNTS’ data, 25% of consumers have used it in the last 12 months, in many cases as a safer form of credit.

“We want to be able to provide that as an option to them and with the clarity of exactly how much they’re paying to get it now versus what it would mean to save up money and buy it later,” said Michalek, Affirm President Technology, Risk and Operations. “That’s a trade-off that everybody makes on a regular basis.”