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LONDON, April 07, 2022–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Zilch, the London, head-quartered fintech Unicorn, today announces it has taken another major step forward in innovating its technology to measure affordability through its latest partnership with Experian, the global information services company to begin reciprocal reporting of Buy Now Pay Later credit information.

Zilch continues to pioneer the space by making use of a unique blend of CRA data, Open Banking data and its own proprietary behavioural data to make active consumer lending decisions. This creates a 360 degree view of a customer’s affordability at any given time.

Zilch’s latest partnership with Experian will add reciprocal reporting of payment plans to the CRA’s data set and further demonstrates how Zilch continues to lead the way in responsible lending, ensuring that its customers’ financial health is at the very heart of everything the business does. This follows Zilch being one of the first BNPL companies to secure a Consumer Credit Licence with the FCA in November 2020.

Further, Zilch continues to work hand in hand with numerous partners to create increasing transparency around customer affordability. This means Zilch, as well as other BNPLs, will be able to assess customer affordability more accurately and reward customers for their responsible behaviour.

Through this new partnership, Zilch will connect the comprehensive database of insights into what its 2 million customers can afford, which in turn will assist its active decision-making processes. Zilch uniquely makes use of open banking data and its own proprietary data to assess customer affordability on each transaction and adding this to that mix will only strengthen Zilch and Experian’s ability to drive customer value responsibly.

Philip Belamant, Zilch Co-Founder & CEO, said: “Our mission at Zilch is to provide people with the most ubiquitous and rewarding way to pay for anything, anywhere. This partnership is one of many technology alignments that we are leveraging as we scale in order to create the most comprehensive view of a customer’s affordability all while ensuring performance is fed back to partners allowing others in the space to make responsible decisions too.

Zilch was built with financial health at its core, which is why we were one of the first BNPL to work with the FCA to secure a consumer credit licence. Today, by partnering with Experian, we are continuing to transform the way affordability is assessed which is the key to us delivering financial inclusion to all.”

Paul Speirs, Managing Director of Digital Consumer Information at Experian, said: “By using Experian’s affordability technology, Zilch is able to access a much richer and deeper level of insight into someone’s financial situation, enabling them to provide a better and more informed lending decision. This is absolutely vital given the backdrop of rising inflation and the strain of rising living costs. We’re excited to partner with Zilch to support responsible lending in the BNPL market.”

Zilch allows its customers to pay on debit or credit anywhere. Cashback, discounts and short, fixed term, manageable levels of interest-free credit can be used anywhere, anytime, with complete visibility and direct communication of live spending via their Zilch app. To do this, Zilch’s in-house technology uses a per-transaction affordability assessment that’s always proportionately programmed to each customer and unlike credit cards, is updated with each spend. Zilch offers its customers the best ways to pay – credit or debit – save money and get cash back – plan repayments with reminders and/or even deferred instalments (snooze their payment) at no cost.

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

ABOUT ZILCH

Founded in 2018 and launched in September 2020, Zilch is Europe’s fastest-ever company to go from launch to double unicorn status in just 14 months. Zilch is on a mission to revolutionise the credit payment industry, BNPL (buy now, pay later) 2.0 with innovative products for customers to manage their cash flow responsibly. As one of the UK’s first BNPL providers to be granted a consumer credit licence by the FCA, Zilch’s transparent and customer-centric credit alternative was designed with regulators to ensure consumer protection and financial health from the start. Utilising sophisticated Open Banking Technology and soft credit checks, Zilch uses its real-time view and understanding of consumers’ affordability to give accurate recommendations of what they can afford to borrow. The company is growing at lightning speed with more than 250,000 new customers registering per month, making it one of the fastest-growing payment providers in the world.

Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire retail space, so they can shop wherever they choose. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

About Experian

Experian is the world’s leading global information services company. During life’s big moments – from buying a home or a car, to sending a child to college, to growing a business by connecting with new customers – we empower consumers and our clients to manage their data with confidence. We help individuals to take financial control and access financial services, businesses to make smarter decisions and thrive, lenders to lend more responsibly, and organisations to prevent identity fraud and crime.

We have 20,000 people operating across 44 countries and every day we’re investing in new technologies, talented people, and innovation to help all our clients maximise every opportunity. We are listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and are a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

Learn more at www.experianplc.com or visit our global content hub at our global news blog for the latest news and insights from the Group.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220406006039/en/

Contacts

For any media enquiries please contact [email protected]
Ryan Mendy, Chief Communications Officer, Zilch
Follow us: https://www.instagram.com/payzilch/
For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

Key Misconceptions and Confusion Around BNPL Prevail Amongst Consumers of All Ages.

MIAMI (BUSINESS WIRE) Findings from a new survey on consumer sentiments and understanding around Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) illustrates that while BNPL is growing in popularity among consumers with 31% of consumers having used the service, there are still several misconceptions and a prevalent lack of understanding around how BNPL companies operate, compete with traditional credit card companies, and serve consumers. The survey was conducted by Zilch, a next-generation BNPL provider that is launching in the US later this spring.

The data demonstrates a widespread lack of understanding around how BNPL companies make money. Nearly half (43%) of consumers believe these companies make money on the interest they collect from consumers. More than one in four – 26% – of consumers believe that products sold through BNPL are marked up with BNPL providers collecting the difference in cost, and another 21% said BNPL firms earn money through secret/unadvertised fees that are paid by the consumer. A total of 31% of respondents said they don’t know how BNPL companies make money.

“It’s a crucial point of differentiation that many BNPL providers, including Zilch, do NOT charge interest while credit cards stand to jeopardize the financial well-being of consumers with high interest rates and balloon payments,” says Philip Belamant, CEO of Zilch.

“According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Americans paid $120 billion annually in credit card interest and fees between 2018 and 2020, equating to $1000 each year per household,” Mr. Belamant added. “The fact that nearly half of consumers believe that all BNPL providers charge interest when they absolutely do not, is not only concerning, but can be significantly detrimental to consumer health.”

Frustrations with Credit Card Options

While credit cards are still the primary tool consumers use to finance purchases, 50% of consumers surveyed said they believe consumers need options beyond credit cards for making purchases and paying for them in installments and 54% of consumers think credit card companies have too much impact on credit scores.

Increasingly high interest rates on credit cards continue to be a widespread issue. Four in ten consumers – 40% – confirmed that their credit card charges an interest rate over 12.99% and another 26% did not know the interest rate they were being charged.

Of the respondents who said they are not happy with the current credit card options available, 56% said the interest rates are too high on all credit cards. Another 36% said they are not happy with the annual fees that the best credit cards charge.

Respondents also blame credit card companies for challenges in securing loans:

Of the consumers surveyed who have had a hard time getting approved for a loan, the majority (76%) blame credit cards.
26% were not able to secure a loan because they defaulted on a credit card for a small amount (less than $2k).
30% were not able to secure a loan because they paid their credit card bill late (less than three times).
19% were not able to secure a loan because the vendor or merchant incorrectly charged or reported a transaction.
“Half of all respondents believe consumers need options beyond expensive credit cards which is exactly what we are trying to solve, but the prevalent confusion and lack of understanding of how BNPL companies operate in general and compared to one another is a grave concern,” says Philip Belamant, CEO of Zilch.

“Many BNPL providers, including Zilch, do not charge their customers interest or late fees and can offer a much more financially healthy approach to financing purchases. Contrary to many BNPL providers, Zilch has never charged a customer a late fee since its inception.”

Other Key BNPL Misconceptions

In addition to confusion around interest rates, additional survey findings reveal widespread confusion across how BNPL companies compare to credit companies.

When respondents were asked if they would use a credit card over BNPL, 48% said no because they like earning points and/or cashback rewards from credit cards. Twenty-five percent said they did not trust or understand BNPL, and 20% said their credit card interest rate is lower than using BNPL.

When asked about hesitations around using BNPL, 25% said that BNPL companies do not offer rewards points or cash back like credit cards. Sixteen percent said BNPL is not regulated and 12.7% said they simply do not understand how BNPL works.

Consumers also expressed a lack of loyalty towards BNPL providers. Only 13.3% indicated that they have a specific provider they always use, and 18.6% of respondents said they used whatever option was available on a retailer’s website when making a purchase.

Notably, confusion surrounding BNPL remains highest among older consumers. Forty-seven percent of respondents over the age of 55 believe that BNPL can charge extra fees while only 25% of consumers ages 18-34 share the same concern. In turn, only 11% of respondents over the age of 55 would recommend using BNPL to friends and family compared to 35% of respondents ages 18-34.

About the Survey

Zilch conducted this survey in partnership with YouGov in March of 2022. The survey pool included 2,000 respondents in the US over the age of 18 and with a minimum household income of $35,000. This was a nationally representative sample.

About Zilch

Zilch is revolutionizing the consumer credit, ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) and payments industry with innovative products for customers to manage their cash flow responsibly. Zilch partners directly with consumers rather than merchants, allowing customers to pay using debit or credit anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Zilch offers its customers the best ways to pay – credit or debit – save money and get cash back – plan repayments with reminders and/or even deferred (snooze) installments at no cost.

Zilch makes use of a unique blend of best in market CRA data, Open Banking and its own proprietary behavioral data technologies to make active consumer lending decisions each time a customer spends to drive responsibility. This creates a real-time 360 degree view and assessment of a customer’s affordability.

Since launching in September 2020, the company has amassed over two million customers in the UK and is adding over 250,000 new users per month. Additionally, Zilch is Europe’s fastest-ever company to go from Series A to unicorn status in just 14 months.

For more information, visit: www.payzilch.com

Contacts
For media inquiries please contact: [email protected]
Jeff Siegel, Senior Vice President, Dukas Linden PR
Ryan Mendy, Chief Communications Officer, Zilch

London, Tuesday 15th March 2022 – London-based Zilch, the fastest fintech to reach double unicorn status, today announces it has surpassed 2 million customers – with record registrations of more than 425,000 new customers in December.

By the same growth stage since launch, Zilch has reached this milestone faster than other popular fintech unicorns like N26 and Revolut, which took 41 and 67 months respectively.

Just 6 months since Zilch reached its first 1 million customers – where it equally outpaced the likes of high-growth companies including NU, Robinhood, Wise and Afterpay (recently acquired by Block Inc. for $29 billion). Zilch’s internal data shows core customers are using their Zilch card on average 8 times per month. This means the frequency of spend by the business’ core customers is heading towards 100 times per year, a testament to Zilch’s value flywheel of payments features such as Tap & Pay over time, which allows customers to pay debit or credit anywhere Mastercard is accepted both online and offline.

In fact, the release of this feature has been so widely adopted by Zilch users that nearly 40% of the fintech’s daily sales are now processed through Tap & Pay. Zilch’s internal data suggests at its current run-rate of GMV, every year Zilch is saving customers $50m in potential fees and interest if the same payments had been used via traditional high-interest bearing credit cards.

Philip Belamant, CEO and Co-Founder, at Zilch, “We’re working day and night to create the most ubiquitous payment product the world has ever seen. Offering our customers the most convenient and responsible way to purchase anything, anywhere. Customers can pay in 1 and earn cashback, using that cash back to discount future purchases or pay over time in 4, with zero-interest credit. Never before in the history of payments have we seen so much value created for customers each and every time they transact, this is why we see Zilch resonating deeply with customers. It’s truly about giving consumers greater value, visibility and control over their finances. We believe it’s also why Zilch’s customer-centric product has become the highest-rated and most reviewed product of its kind on Trust Pilot with more than 37,000 reviews.”

“With the recent surge in the cost of living, people need a product that works in their interest. In December 2021 alone, we provided over $5 million in cashback & rewards to our customers, just at a time when it most counts. It’s testament to our growing international team and the unique customer-centric approach that we’ve pioneered. We aren’t stopping here and are excited about our imminent US debut.”

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

ABOUT ZILCH

Zilch is Europe’s fastest-ever company to go from Series A to unicorn status in just 14 months. Zilch is on a mission to revolutionise the credit payment industry, BNPL (buy now, pay later) 2.0 with innovative products for customers to manage their cash flow responsibly. As one of the UK’s first BNPL providers to be granted a consumer credit licence by the FCA, Zilch’s transparent and customer-centric credit alternative was designed with regulators to ensure consumer protection and financial health from the start. Utilising sophisticated Open Banking Technology and soft credit checks, Zilch uses its real-time view and understanding of consumers’ affordability to give accurate recommendations of what they can afford to borrow. The company is growing at lightning speed with more than 250,000 new customers registering per month, making it one of the fastest-growing BNPL providers in the world.

Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire retail space, so they can shop wherever they choose. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

PRESS CONTACT

For any media enquiries please contact [email protected]

For direct company enquiries, please contact [email protected]

By ExecEdge Editorial Staff

London-based fintech Zilch continues to set records for growth, signalling consumers are responding to the company’s efforts to provide what CEO Philip Belamant calls “the democratisation of free credit.” In November 2021, the company was valued at $2 billion just 14 months after its Series A, making it a double unicorn and the fastest-growing European unicorn ever. Now, Zilch has announced it has surpassed 2 million users, reaching the milestone in record time for a fintech company. While fintech is often touted as a disruption to traditional finance, Zilch is clearly standing out even within this disruptive space, and it is quickly moving toward Belamant’s goal of creating “the most ubiquitous payment product the world has ever seen.”

This rapid growth raises two central questions. First, what is Zilch doing differently from other fintech companies? Second, why are so many consumers responding to Zilch’s approach? There is no shortage of competition, investment, and user growth in the fintech space, yet Zilch’s metrics put it in a different category and understanding why this is the case sheds light on how Zilch is leading a revolution in personal finance.

What Makes Zilch Unique?

Zilch is often discussed alongside popular buy now, pay later (BNPL) companies, but the company was founded to provide more than a standard BNPL service. BNPLs allow customers to pay for purchases over time in instalment payments and traditionally focus on online shopping at partner stores. Zilch does provide that service, partnering with thousands of stores to offer Pay in 4 plans at 0 interest, but the company’s offerings extend beyond online shopping and beyond standard BNPL instalment payment plans.

These extended offerings are the key factors that differentiate Zilch’s product in a crowded space. They are based on fundamental commitments underlying Zilch’s approach: a commitment to allowing its customers to use Zilch anywhere they like to shop, and a commitment to rewarding customers with value for choosing to use Zilch.

Zilch’s commitments to flexibility and value have led to a straightforward business model that is connecting with consumers. Zilch customers use a virtual Mastercard for online or Tap and Pay shopping. They can either choose to Pay in 1 at checkout and earn cashback to use on future purchases, or they can choose to Pay in 4 and spread payments over six weeks with 0 interest.

“Never before in the history of payments have we seen so much value created for customers each and every time they transact. This is why we see Zilch resonating deeply with customers,” says Belamant.

Bringing Value Directly to the Consumer

The standard model for BNPL companies is to partner with retail stores, with retailers paying the BNPL provider each time a customer chooses a BNPL option at checkout. On this model, even though the end consumer is the recipient of the BNPL plan, it is retailers who are ultimately the BNPL company’s customer.

Zilch has built its business with a different approach which allows Zilch users to pay for anything with Zilch anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Users have access to all of Zilch’s services — including Pay in 1 with rewards and Pay in 4 plans at 0 interest.

This direct-to-consumer approach means that Zilch has the potential to grow in unique ways that distinguish it from traditional BNPL companies, which traditionally rely solely on integrating with a network of retailers to grow their businesses.

Belamant sees interesting parallels between Zilch and another company that experienced rapid growth by pursuing a direct-to-consumer approach.

“Our customer is actually the end consumer, similar to what you saw with Amazon in the early days. They built this delivery infrastructure, which was pretty phenomenal, and on top of that were delivering books,” Belamant explained in a recent interview with Bloomberg TV. “They could have taken that delivery logistics infrastructure and sold it to one bookstore, one at a time, integrated it with that bookstore and said if your customer wants to buy a book, we’ll show it to them online and ship it to them for you. But they didn’t do that. They went directly to the consumer, and that’s why they are Amazon.. Otherwise, they would’ve most likely become a logistics business, a commodity.”

In offering BNPL directly to the consumer, Zilch is following this direct-to-consumer approach and avoiding the potential commoditization of its business. Rather than rely on selling itself as a commodity for retailers to integrate with online stores, the company is focusing on growing as a stand-alone product that brings purchasing options and value directly to the individual consumer and as a direct result, creating phenomenal value for retailers, too.

A Value Flywheel

While going direct to the consumer provides unique growth opportunities, growth will only occur if the direct-to-consumer approach results in a better product, and Zilch’s rapid user growth is a clear signal that consumers are finding value in Zilch’s approach.

As Belamant puts it, Zilch’s approach is “truly about giving consumers greater value, visibility, and control over their finances. We believe it’s also why Zilch’s customer-centric product has become the highest-rated and most reviewed product of its kind on Trustpilot [a consumer-review site], with more than 37,000 reviews.”

Zilch’s features are built to offer customers a value flywheel, an approach to personal finance in which cashback rewards accumulate and facilitate purchases in a continuous value-add cycle that benefits all parties involved: the customer, Zilch, and Zilch’s partner stores. Two features have been crucial to building this flywheel: Zilch Rewards and Tap and Pay.

When customers use their Zilch card and choose to pay for their purchase in full at checkout, they earn 2% cashback in Zilch Rewards. These cashback rewards grow over time and can be applied to future purchases. At the same time, Tap and Pay enables Zilch users to save their virtual Zilch card in digital wallet apps such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay to use for in-store purchases just as they would use a traditional debit or credit card. The combination of these features creates a cycle in which Zilch users accumulate cashback rewards on more purchases, and in turn are able to use these rewards for or toward more of their purchases, either online or in-store.

Philip Belamant explained that this cashback value flywheel has been helping Zilch customers at a crucial time.

“With the recent surge in the cost of living, people need a product that works in their interest. In December 2021 alone, we provided over $5 million of value in cashback and rewards to our customers and saved in the vicinity of USD50m in interest and fees for customers in 2020, just at a time when it most counts. It’s testament to our growing international team and the unique customer-centric approach that we’ve pioneered,” he said.

In addition to providing cashback rewards, Zilch is focused on providing a means of helping customers manage their cash flow responsibly. The company utilises innovative open banking technology to perform per-transaction affordability assessments proportionally programmed to each customer, and these assessments are updated each time users spend with their Zilch card for the type of up-to-date accuracy that is not provided by traditional credit cards.

The goal is to provide customers with flexibility and value, whether they choose to use Zilch as an affordable credit option when they Pay in 4 or as a debit option that provides cashback rewards for paying in a single payment.

Unprecedented Growth

Zilch quickly began to accumulate users following its launch in late 2019, and that growth has only accelerated. The company reached 1 million users in just 13 months, faster than some of the fastest-growing fintech companies, including NU, Robinhood, Wise, and Afterpay. As Zilch is now adding more than 250,000 users per month, it did not take long to double this count to 2 million in just 5 months. And the company registered a record 425,000 new customers in December 2021 alone.

It’s clear Zilch is gaining more customers, but additionally, Zilch customers are paying with Zilch more often. Zilch has reported that its core customers are using their Zilch cards an average of eight times per month. At this rate, the frequency of spend among Zilch’s core customers is nearing 100 times per year – that’s more than some customers use Amazon!

Tap and Pay has been a significant contributing factor to this growth. The feature has been widely adopted, with Zilch reporting that 40% of daily sales are now processed through Tap and Pay. The takeaway is that customers are using their Zilch card much as they would use a traditional debit or credit card, and according to Zilch, this activity is saving users a total of $50 million annually in potential fees and interest that would have accrued from spending with traditional high-interest credit cards.

Investors have taken notice of Zilch’s growth. In November 2021, the company announced $110 million in funding from venture capital firms Ventura Capital and Gauss Ventures, and Zilch has received nearly $340 million in total funding to date.

Zilch is using these investments to grow the company along with its user growth. It now has over 210 employees and plans on expanding into the U.S. in 2022.

“We aren’t stopping here and are excited about our imminent U.S. debut,” said Belamant.

Zilch and the Future of Finance

There is no ignoring that fintech has disrupted the traditional finance model and that consumers are responding. Zilch is a prime example of this shift. As more consumers, particularly millennials and members of Gen Z, demand accessibility and value from their financial tools, products like Zilch only stand to continue to grow.

In addition to expanding its reach internationally, Zilch is planning to continue to improve on its accessibility and value, working to provide more possible payment options, including options such as cryptocurrency in addition to rewards and fiat currency.

As it leads the way in revolutionising finance, Zilch is committed to working with regulators. It has operated with a consumer credit licence from the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority since launching in 2019 and continues to build its business on being a fully regulated company as it scales up.

London, 13 January 2022 | Zilch, the London-based unicorn Fintech announced today that it has expanded its partnership with Mastercard to bring Zilch’s popular over-the-top buy now, pay later (BNPL) digital card offering to Europe and enable deferred purchases across the EU. Zilch’s digital card is currently available in the UK and has already reached over 1.7 million customers in less than 15 months – record time within the BNPL industry.

Today’s announcement will see Zilch accelerate its international growth across Europe. Enabling Mastercard payments Europe-wide supports Zilch’s mission to empower customers to shop anywhere, anytime using its unique BNPL solution with no hidden costs, interest or fees.

Zilch has partnered with Mastercard since its beta launch in August 2019 to deliver its unique and retailer-agnostic BNPL payment solution. The Fintech is the first truly over-the-top (OTT) BNPL product which is independent of the checkout page and allows its customers to shop wherever Mastercard is accepted and spread their payment over six weeks for zero interest and zero fees.

This direct-to-consumer model allows Zilch to build direct relationships with its customers – Zilch is now the best-rated product of its kind on Trustpilot with over 33,649 reviews – and scale significantly faster than its competitors as its “social deployment” strategy is not restricted by borders or merchant acquisition and integration.

Philip Belamant, Zilch founder and CEO, said, “Zilch’s absolute focus is the customer and ensuring that their experience is best in class. With our partner, Mastercard we remove acceptance as a barrier and ensure our customers can pay over time anywhere, instantly. We empower our customers to buy what they want, when they want it, without being limited by temporary cash shortages – that’s priceless. We are excited to continue our work with a partner that shares our values and is committed to addressing the needs of our customers at home and abroad as we gear up to launch Zilch in the USA and EU.”

Jason Lane, EVP Market Development Europe at Mastercard said, “We are excited to further our relationship with Zilch in their ongoing efforts to scale globally, expanding their offering across Europe and offering consumers even more choice on how and when they want to pay.”

Zilch is built upon responsibility, offers transparency and is the only player in the industry that uses Open Banking technology combined with soft credit checks to gain a real-time view and understanding of the consumer’s affordability profile and make an accurate recommendation of what they can afford, preventing problem debt. The Fintech is one of the UK’s first BNPL Fintech to be granted a consumer credit licence by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The move marked a landmark moment for the UK Fintech industry and is a testament to Zilch’s unique approach of placing consumer financial wellness and protection at the heart of its operations.

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

ABOUT ZILCH

Zilch is Europe’s fastest-ever company to go from Series A to unicorn status in just 14 months. Zilch is on a mission to revolutionise the credit payment industry, ‘buy now, pay later’ 2.0 with innovative products for customers to manage their cashflow responsibly. As one of the UK’s first BNPL providers to be granted a consumer credit licence by the FCA, Zilch’s transparent and customer-centric credit alternative was designed with regulators to ensure consumer protection and financial wellness from the start. Utilising sophisticated Open Banking Technology and soft credit checks, Zilch uses its real-time view and understanding of consumers’ affordability to give accurate recommendations of what they can afford to borrow. The company is growing at lightning speed with more than 185,000 new customers registering per month, making it one of the fastest-growing BNPL providers in the world.

Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire retail space, so they can shop wherever they choose. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

ABOUT MASTERCARD

About Mastercard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions safe, simple, smart and accessible. Using secure data and networks, partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help individuals, financial institutions, governments and businesses realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ, drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our company. With connections across more than 210 countries and territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks priceless possibilities for all.

Follow us on Twitter @MastercardEU @MastercardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.

London, 15 December 2021 | Zilch, the London-based buy now, pay later (BNPL) has announced the launch of Gift Cards by Zilch ahead of Christmas. The move, which launches Zilch into another fast growing vertical of personalised online gifting follows a series of high-profile business developments, news the fintech reached unicorn status at a $2bn valuation and reaching more than 1 million customers in record time within the BNPL industry. Gift cards are the latest example of how Zilch’s customer-centric approach has driven its exponential growth.

Gift Cards by Zilch brings its popular over-the-top digital card offering directly into a fast-growing retail vertical with unmet customer demand for BNPL. Zilch currently has 1.4 million customers with digital cards that will now be able to shop for multi use digital gift cards from the platform. This comes in addition to the huge market opportunity for Zilch in BNPL, as global gift card sales are expected to grow nearly 8% annually, projected to reach $1.4tn by 2026. Entry into gift cards will be another proof of concept for launch in new markets with full rollout of Zilch in the US, the world’s largest retail market, early next year.

Listening to customers first, Gift Cards by Zilch builds on the unique value proposition of its payment solutions to provide customers with another way to spread costs over time responsibly. Amid a resurgent pandemic the launch of Gift Cards by Zilch is more than a simple BNPL service add-on and is designed to give customers a personalised and convenient experience at a time it is most needed. The digital gift cards can be bought, sent and spent entirely online, added to Apple Wallet and shared with personal videos and messages.

Philip Belamant, Zilch founder and CEO said: “Zilch has had a phenomenal year of growth, customer acquisition, new products and business expansion. Zilch is offering a responsible and affordable form of consumer credit and our total focus on building a best-in-class customer experience will continue to drive exponential growth when we listen to our customers as we have with Gift Cards by Zilch. Our customers asked and we’re delighted to share a whole new gift card marketplace with them today.”

He added:“The pandemic truly accelerated ecommerce, one reason for the popularity of Zilch’s digital card offering which our gift cards will compliment, but also made 2021 a difficult year for many. Wishing all of our customers happy holidays and a better new year, I hope Gift Cards by Zilch is able to help them share a bit of joy in gifting to friends and family.”

Launched in August 2019, Zilch is Europe’s fastest-ever company to go from Series A to unicorn status in just 14 months. Gift Cards by Zilch will complement the fintech’s first truly over-the-top (OTT) BNPL product that allows its customers to shop wherever Mastercard is accepted and spread their payment over six weeks for zero interest and zero fees. This customer-first model allows Zilch to build direct relationships with its customers – Zilch is now the highest-rated product of its kind on Trustpilot – and scale significantly faster than its competitors as its “social deployment” strategy is not restricted by borders or merchant acquisition and integration.

Zilch is built upon responsibility, offers transparency and is the only player in the industry that uses Open Banking technology combined with soft credit checks to gain a real-time view and understanding of the customer’s affordability profile and make an accurate recommendation of what they can afford, preventing problem debt. The fintech is one of the UK’s first BNPL providers to be granted a consumer credit licence by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The move marked a landmark moment for the UK fintech industry and is a testament to Zilch’s unique approach of placing consumer financial wellness and protection at the heart of its operations.

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

ABOUT ZILCH

The company is growing at lightning speed with more than 185,000 new customers registering per month, making it one of the fastest-growing BNPL providers in the world. Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire retail space, so they can shop wherever and whenever they choose. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

London, 10th November, 2021 – Zilch, the London-based fintech, today announced that it has closed a $110m Series C funding round, making it the fastest company in Europe to reach unicorn status, with a valuation of over $2billion. This round was led by Ventura Capital and Gauss Ventures with numerous other notable investors. Existing investors include the likes of Goldman Sachs.

Following the success of its initial Series A funding round in September 2020, Zilch has leapfrogged other high-flying scale-ups to become a double unicorn in just 14 months – faster than any other in the EU including the likes of high-flying Cazoo.

Zilch’s growth rate is unparalleled within the BNPL industry. Since the company’s last funding round in March 2021, the business has grown over 8X. The scale-up’s customer base grew from 0 to 1 million in just 13 months – faster than competitors such as Affirm and Klarna as well as Neo-bank Revolut.

The scale-up’s over-the-top, direct-to-consumer model allows Zilch to build direct relationships with its customers and scale significantly faster than its competitors, with a deployment strategy that is not restricted by borders and is merchant agnostic. Zilch allows both debit and credit transactions on its platform and as a result, its customers make use of its services more times in a month than some customers use competitor services in a year.

Philip Belamant, founder and CEO, said, “It’s really been phenomenal to watch customers adopt our product at such significant speed. Our entire 200+ team is truly humbled and grateful for the opportunity to serve millions of customers daily and rest assured we are all working around the clock to delight them. We have been fortunate to experience such phenomenal growth over the last 14 months and today we are celebrating becoming one of Europe’s fastest unicorns.

Our unique business model, which is built on regulation and places consumer financial wellness at the heart of our operations, has created a revolution in the BNPL industry. We’re excited about this major milestone but realise that the job is nowhere near done and this really only marks the beginning of our growth journey as we aim to become the best way for consumers to pay for anything, anywhere.”

Zilch is gearing up to launch in the USA and has made significant progress since it opened its offices in Miami and secured a lending license in California earlier this year as well as partnered with Cross River, Marqeta and Checkout.com. The company has significantly grown its headcount by over 10 times in 2021 and has 210 staff across its offices in London, Miami and Krakow. Following the acquisition of US lending fintech NepFin, Zilch will also be hiring a further 150+ people in the US over the next 12-18 months.

Mo El Husseiny, Managing Partner at Ventura Capital commented, “It’s not very often that you come across a business with a phenomenal business idea, outclass technology and the equivalent execution. Zilch has all of the above and the hypergrowth proves it. These attributes have made Zilch a flagship investment for Ventura, aligned to our portfolio of disruptors in consumer technology, having already shaken up the UK credit industry and gone from Series A to Unicorn in record time. We’re delighted to rejoin Zilch in this next milestone growth round on their mission to offer the best way to pay over time and to fund accelerated expansion plans and launch in the US.”

Zilch was the first BNPL provider to launch a debit feature, Zilch Now, which uses Open Banking technology to inform users about their payment options based on their real-time financial data, proactively warning them if a purchasing decision will have a negative impact at a later date.

Zilch continues to lead the way in responsible spending and was one of the first BNPL providers in the UK to receive a consumer credit license from the FCA. Zilch is built upon responsibility and is the only player in the industry that uses Open Banking technology combined with soft credit checks to gain a real-time view and understanding of the consumer’s affordability profile and make an accurate recommendation of what they can afford, preventing problematic debt.

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

ABOUT ZILCH

Zilch is Europe’s fastest double unicorn fintech – with over 210 employees based across its offices in London, Miami and Krakow. Zilch is redefining the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) space. Its unique over-the-top platform is the first of its kind and by utilising sophisticated Open Banking Technology they only lend a user what they can afford to pay back therefore preventing problematic debt. The company is growing at lightning speed with more than 185,000 new customers registering per month, making it one of the fastest-growing BNPL in the UK.

Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire retail space, so they can shop wherever they choose. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

The Bicester Village Shopping Collection – a global platform of 11 flagship retail destinations in Europe and China, created and operated by Value Retail – has announced a partnership with Zilch, a UK-based Buy Now, Pay Later service provider.

Under the partnership, the companies will join forces to offer Zilch’s payment service to all of the nine Villages within The Bicester Village Shopping Collection in Europe, launching first at Bicester Village in Oxfordshire. This will give the Village’s guests the opportunity to use Zilch to tap and pay at any boutique or restaurant and either split their payments into 4 over 6 weeks with 0% interest or pay everything in 1 go and get 5% cashback in Zilch Rewards, which can be used to discount future purchases.

Zilch can be used anywhere, both for online and in-store purchases. Bicester Village is the first in-store partner of Zilch and it will soon be made available to the other Villages in Europe, as Zilch expands its services internationally. With more than 160 boutiques housing British and international luxury brands, Bicester Village guests can enjoy savings of up to 60% on the recommended retail price all year round and can enjoy on-the-go and all-day dining from its wide range of restaurants and cafes.

“Zilch is delighted to partner with The Bicester Village Shopping Collection. Paying through Zilch will deliver greater value for both customers and retailers of Bicester Village, and we are very excited to watch this partnership unfold and roll out internationally,” said Philip Belamant, CEO and Founder of Zilch.

“At The Bicester Village Shopping Collection, we’re resolutely focused on delivering an exceptional and seamless shopping experience, which is why we’re delighted to partner with Zilch, whose innovative fintech platform allows guests to shop now, pay later and with no interest,” said Marcelo Molinari, Global Director – Destination Marketing & Partnerships, The Bicester Village Shopping Collection.

Besides being able to pay in 4 with 0 interest and pay in 1 with 5% cashback anywhere including all of the boutiques, restaurants and cafes in Bicester Village, Zilch users will also get exclusive offers including a VIP Pass which will enable them to get additional savings at Bicester Village boutiques.

The tap and pay BNPL feature of Zilch uniquely supports the return to brick and mortar shopping post-lockdown. Furthermore, the partnership with Zilch also benefits brands and retailers in Bicester Village, as there is no need to integrate Zilch at point of sale or to train staff because Zilch works wherever Mastercard is accepted. All boutiques and restaurants in Bicester Village accept Mastercard with no extra fees and this essentially makes the checkout process easier and friction-free for both the customers and retailers. There is also no change to the refund process when Zilch is used.

About The Bicester Village Shopping Collection®

The Bicester Village Shopping Collection is the 11 distinctive destinations in Western Europe and China, within reach
of many of the world’s most important gateway cities: London, Paris, Shanghai, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Brussels, Antwerp, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Munich, Frankfurt, and Suzhou. The Collection, which can be shopped physically or virtually,

is unique in its unprecedented mix of the world’s most revered fashion and lifestyle brands. Beautiful blue sky Villages set in rolling countryside, remarkable service and savings of up to 60% all combine to create an extraordinary shopping experience for the world’s most discerning guests. Discover more at TheBicesterVillageShoppingCollection.com

Series B extension combines debt and equity to provide Zilch with an additional $110m of funding

Zilch is one of the UK’s first ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ apps regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

London, July 23, 2021 – Zilch, the London-based fintech, announces it has raised a further $110m of debt and equity funding to service the phenomenal demand for its unique ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) product as usage continues to soar.

The latest funding comes from Goldman Sachs Asset Management, DMG Ventures (the venture capital arm of the Daily Mail and General Trust plc) and others. This investment will enable Zilch to further accelerate its growth with nationwide media campaigns in the UK and the launch of its services in the US.

Zilch’s latest round makes it one of the best funded European fintech start-up’s at the Series B stage.

Philip Belamant, Founder and CEO at Zilch, “As our customer numbers continue to grow, we’ve taken the decision to raise additional capital to service this phenomenal demand. As Zilch continues to scale at pace, we’re delighted that well-respected institutions such as Goldman Sachs and DMG Ventures share our vision of what credit should be in today’s world and how that can be delivered directly to customers in the most responsible way. By putting our customers first and building direct relationships with each of them, we are doing something no one else in the industry has done before.”

Zilch is committed to providing customers with the ability to manage their cash flow responsibly and is one of the first fully regulated BNPL providers in the UK. The investments, which included debt from the Private Credit business within Goldman Sachs Asset Management, will accelerate Zilch’s expansion plans.

Pankaj Soni, Executive Director at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, “We’ve been tracking Zilch’s progress over the last 12 months and are impressed with the differentiated and direct to consumer approach that the company has taken to build its offering. We are delighted to be supporting their growth and look forward to build on our relationship in the coming years.”

Zilch is the first truly over-the-top (OTT) BNPL product that allows its customers to shop wherever MasterCard is accepted and spread their payment over six weeks for zero interest and zero fees. This lightweight, direct-to-consumer model allows Zilch to build direct relationships with its customers – Zilch is now the highest-rated product of its kind on Trustpilot – and scale significantly faster than its competitors as its deployment strategy is not restricted by borders or merchant acquisition and integration.

Manuel Lopo de Carvalho, CEO at DMG Ventures, “We’re excited to be joining as investors in Zilch, supporting Philip and the team. The pace of what they have achieved is phenomenal – the level of adoption Zilch has seen this year alone is remarkable. There is a clear opportunity to provide more accessible and responsible credit to UK consumers and we’re delighted to support Zilch in the proliferation of its brand and message to UK customers nationwide.”

This funding round follows a series of announcements from Zilch, including its latest unique feature, Tap and Pay-over-time. The fintech aims to become the largest BNPL player in-store in the UK without the need for its customers to use annoying bar / QR codes.

For more information, visit: https://www.zilch.com/uk/

– ENDS –

About Zilch

Zilch is the FinTech darling of the UK – Born in London, its unique over-the-top platform is the first of its kind in the fast-growing Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) space. By taking accountability for its customers, Zilch removes the anxiety associated with credit. Its proprietary data-driven credit assessment technology focuses on optimising its users’ cash flow whilst preventing over-indebtedness. The company is growing at lightning speed with soaring numbers of sign-ups each month, making it the fastest-growing BNPL in the UK.

Unlike other players in the BNPL space, Zilch’s merchant agnostic proposition offers its users unrestricted access to the entire online retail space, so they can shop wherever they choose to do so. Wanna buy it? Zilch it!

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London, 19th April, 2021 – Zilch, the London based start-up redefining the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) industry, today announces it has raised $80M in their series B funding round, backed by numerous investors including Gauss Ventures and M&F Fund. Over the last 2 years, the company has raised more than $120 million and is now valued at over $500M.

The Fintech is committed to responsible spending and is the first and only fully Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulated BNPL in the UK. The startup is scaling at pace, its mobile app recently hit number 2 on the App Store charts just behind PayPal and its growing customer base is fast approaching half a million customers. Zilch is one of the fastest growing BNPL providers in the UK with thousands of signups a day.

The funding will be used to launch in the USA and continue the company’s growth in the UK by investing further in product innovation and development. Over 2020 Zilch has rapidly expanded its internal talent and more than quadrupled its headcount to 80, with 100 new hires planned as it grows its UK headquarters and looks to enter the US market. Strategic hire includes Werner Kruger, ex VP of Data Science at Klarna and Monese’s ex-Chief Analytics Officer, as Chief Data Officer and more recently, Amabel Polglase, ex-Head of Global Clients at Facebook, as Chief Marketing Officer.

Unlike other players in the industry, Zilch is the first truly over-the-top (OTT) BNPL product that allows its customers to shop wherever MasterCard is accepted and spread their payment over 6 weeks for zero interest and zero fees. This lightweight, direct-to-consumer model allows Zilch to build direct relationships with its customers – Zilch is now the highest-rated product of its kind on Trustpilot – and scale significantly faster than its competitors as its deployment strategy is not restricted by borders or merchant acquisition and integration.

Philip Belamant, Founder and CEO at Zilch, “This funding is a demonstration of the confidence and strength of Zilch’s mission and products. By putting the customer first and building direct relationships with each of them, we are doing something no one else in the industry has done before. Zilch is far more than a BNPL company. We will very soon be launching in a number of new countries and continue the testing and rapid rollout of alternate ways for our customers to spend with Zilch.

Our inspiration is fuelled by Gen Z and millennials, who make up a large part of our customer base. Their demand for convenient and transparent products drives us to keep innovating and improving our offering. We have built a digital platform that links our customer with every retailer in the world allowing us to learn what our customers want, build those features and ship them for a dime to every customer of ours in an instant – exciting times ahead!”

Zilch is the only fully Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulated player in the UK, having worked with the regulator over 12 months to secure a consumer credit authorisation in 2020 – a testament to Zilch’s unique approach of placing consumer financial wellness at the heart of its operations.

This funding round follows Zilch’s latest announcement of their latest unique feature, Tap and Pay-over-time. The fintech aims to become the largest BNPL player in-store in the UK without the need for its customers to use annoying bar / QR codes. This will be the first-ever product of its kind in the UK and Europe and will allow Zilch customers to add the Zilch card to their digital wallet of choice and easily tap and pay in-store and spread the costs over a six-week period.