Scalapay, a Milan, Italy-based company that enables e-commerce merchants to offer Buy Now, Pay Later capability, has raised $497 million in Series B funding, bringing its total funding to over $700 million to date. BNPL solutions allow customers to transact online and receive goods right away but not make any up-front payment. Consumers using BNPL can pay for their goods in installments—often without interest, depending on the model the provider employs.
Because its popularity is exploding with shoppers—especially during the recently completed holiday season, Gen Z consumers (18 to 32-year-olds) are adopting the payment method especially quickly. Merchants deciding which providers to work with must consider factors including the geographic reach of the provider, the consumer profiles that use each type of service, and especially risk.
And, as with any new online payment method that is new and largely unregulated, fraud is a growing challenge.
Scalapay says it hopes to leverage the significant funding round to double its headcount by the end of the year and add experience to the executive team and company board. The funding round was led by Tencent and Willoughby Capital, along with Tiger Global, Gangwal, Moore Capital, Deimos and Fasanara Capital.
