PayPal-Backed Paidy Launches ‘3-Pay’ As eCommerce Surges In Japan

Japanese consumers can now buy now and pay later in three installments instead of four.

On Wednesday (Oct. 28), Paidy unveiled 3-Pay, enabling users of its Paidy Plus service to split their purchases into three installments, something the startup calls a first in Japan.

It also stands in marked contrast to Klarna, Europe’s biggest FinTech, which has been expanding globally with its buy now, pay later (BNPL) four-installment payment service.

Paidy said its new service will have no added interest or fees. It is slated to go live on Nov. 3, when consumers buying items with Paidy can opt for the 3-Pay option during checkout.

First launched in 2008, Paidy went on to later introduce Japan’s first BNPL service for eCommerce customers, the company noted in a press release.

Through April, Paidy had raised $281 million in equity and debt, one of the largest hauls in Japan’s tech sector. Investors included PayPal and Goldman Sachs as well as ITOCHU Corp., among others.

“At Paidy, our goal is to provide everyone with room to dream. Paidy’s most important mission is to offer an experience where everyone can feel reassured that they can shop on their own terms,” said Russell Cummer, Paidy, Inc., founder and chairman of Paidy, in a press release. “3-Pay is a major milestone to that end – it puts the customer in control and allows them to ‘split the bill,’ so to speak, with their future self. We think of it as a constructive investment in your future. Paidy wants to help all our customers manage their budget wisely while having an exciting future, through Paidy 3-Pay.”

Cummer recently discussed the startup’s strategy at length in an interview with Karen Webster. The coronavirus pandemic has helped fuel growing interest in Paidy on part of Japanese consumers, who are looking for an alternative to credit cards and COD, which involve close contact transactions, he told Webster.