Intense rumors that the colossus is preparing to enter the field of cryptocurrencies
The buy-now-pay-later payment model is now used by Amazon, for purchases over $50. Amazon customers will now be able to buy as many items as they like and pay later, and those purchases will not affect their bank credibility.
Thanks to a new partnership with Affirm, Amazon provides the new feature to help customers who may not have the money to pay the upfront total, but still want to make a purchase.
During the checkout process, the customers can choose to make the payment of their order through Affirm. Then the company undergoes a “soft credit check” and immediately, the amount a customer can borrow, the installments, and the repayment time will be determined. Depending on the customer and the value of the order, the installments can range from 3 to 48 months, with an interest rate from 0% to 30%. Approved customers are shown the total cost of their purchase upfront and will never pay more than what they agree to at the checkout.
“By partnering with Amazon we’re bringing the transparency, predictability, and affordability that Affirm provides today to the millions of people who shop on Amazon.com in the U.S.,” said Eric Morse, Senior Vice President of Sales at Affirm. “Offering Affirm’s alternative to credit cards also delivers more of the payment choice and flexibility consumers on Amazon want.”
Amazon and Affirm are testing the new tool with select customers now, and in the coming months, Amazon plans to make this option more broadly available to its customers.
During the pandemic, demand for companies offering the buy-now-pay-later payment model such as Affirm, Afterpay, and Klarna, skyrocketed. Buy-now-pay-later companies are becoming more attractive to customers compared to credit card companies due to less impact on customer profiles and credibility.
Will Amazon wove into Crypto?
Amazon has recently introduced another new payment option, by offering the “Digital Amazon Coin” and sparking intense rumors that it is moving into the cryptocurrency world.
Amazon Coins are currently only available to US customers, who can use them to purchase from the Amazon Appstore and the Kindle Fire. The company—in the beginning – offered free 500 coins to all owners of Kindle Fire devices in the US to test the new digital coin.
Each coin is worth $ 0.01, with large purchases leading to discounts of up to 10%, while transactions are taxed by applicable law.
Amazon declared that the new currency aimed at facilitating the purchase of applications while providing opportunities for increased interest and more profits for developers. Also, the company pointed out that the purchased Amazon Coins never “expire”.
Lately, there are many rumors and speculations regarding e-commerce giant Amazon moving into the crypto-space and accepting cryptocurrencies as a payment option. At the moment the company has not confirmed such an “investment”, however, it seems that it is moving in this direction, with particular interest.
According to many analysts, the digital currency recently created by Amazon is the beginning of a new era for the giant e-commerce company. Combined with the fact that Amazon is constantly looking for new and flexible payment methods (as it does now with the buy-now-pay-later feature) it is very likely that by the end of 2021 the company will enter the field of cryptocurrencies even more dynamically, as predicted by several analysts.
