TrueMoney inaugurates 'Pay Next - Credit on Hand'

TrueMoney inaugurates 'Pay Next - Credit on Hand'

Responds to 'buy now, pay later' trend

Ms Monsinee, centre left, and Mr Tanyapong, centre right, announced the launch of 'Pay Next – Credit on Hand', a BNPL service provided on TrueMoney Wallet.
Ms Monsinee, centre left, and Mr Tanyapong, centre right, announced the launch of 'Pay Next – Credit on Hand', a BNPL service provided on TrueMoney Wallet.

TrueMoney, a major e-payment and financial service provider in Asean, is offering a buy now, pay later (BNPL) service through its Wallet app, enabling users to make purchases from a credit line without having to spend their personal cash.

The BNPL trend is gathering pace around the world, particularly among young generations and people who do not have credit cards.

TrueMoney operates under Ascend Money, the digital payment and financial service unicorn of Ascend Group, Charoen Pokphand Group's online business arm.

Monsinee Nakapanant, co-president of Ascend Money, said BNPL is an untapped market valued at 60 billion baht in Thailand. The segment is expected to surge by 10-15% in value over the next five years, she said.

"In Thailand, BNPL can grow to 15% of the total population -- similar to the situation in China," said Ms Monsinee.

TrueMoney on Tuesday formally launched its "Pay Next - Credit on hand" BNPL service, provided through its flagship TrueMoney Wallet application.

Under the service, a credit limit of up to 10,000 baht will be provided to users, effective immediately after approval.

Free interest will be provided if the credit repayment is carried out by the due date. Users can also choose an instalment payment plan for a period of up to five months.

"The pilot rollout of the service was made a year ago and now it has gained more than 2 million users with loans amounting to more than 1 billion baht," said Tanyapong Thamavaranukupt, co-president of Ascend Money.

Three million users of the services are expected by the end of next year, he said.

He said it normally takes banks 10 years to achieve the 2-million user level, so the firm's Pay Next service has grown quickly.

The BNPL service has helped increase the frequency of the Wallet app usage and has driven spending by 20-30%.

There are more than 200,000 payment acceptance points nationwide subject to the Pay Next service, along with 1.5 million websites and apps.

According to Mr Tanyapong, most BNPL users are aged 20-40. A study shows more than 94% of users are satisfied with the service.

The service focuses on fulfilling the new generation's need for greater flexibility in terms of everyday spending and also complements as a solution for money management, he said.

Customers find it is more convenient to make purchases without paying from their regular cash flow for the desired goods and services by using a line of credit to increase financial flexibility, he said.

TrueMoney also offers "Pay Next Extra" BNPL services for customers who particularly want to pay by instalments for purchases at partner stores.

It offers up to 50,000 baht in credit and an instalment plan to repay the credit over a maximum of 36 months.

More than 5,000 partner stores are linked with the Pay Next Extra service. The number is expected to surpass 7,000 by the end of this year.

Ms Monsinee said TrueMoney Wallet has around 26 million users now and it is expected to reach half of the country's population over the next two years.

TrueMoney has attained profitability over the past eight months.

"We hope that we will see the profits in this full year despite economic concerns," said Ms Monsinee.

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