Mastercard has acquired Texas-based Vyze, a technology platform that delivers more choice – and purchasing power – to people who want their point-of-sale payment options to match the flexibility and convenience of today’s shopping experiences. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Increasingly, consumers are seeking alternative financing options, leaving merchants and financial institutions with a need to deliver these services at the point of sale. In the U.S. alone, these solutions represent a more than $1.8 trillion opportunity, according to Accenture.
Vyze shakes up traditional models by connecting merchants with multiple lenders, allowing them to offer their customers a wide range of credit options online and in-store. These financing options provide shoppers with additional payment flexibility at the exact moment of purchase, complementing Mastercard’s existing card and ACH-based solutions.
“Both consumers and businesses want the best choice and service, exactly when they need it,” said Blake Rosenthal, executive vice president of global acceptance at Mastercard. “Vyze adds to our ability to empower banks and other lending partners to participate in the growing trend of retail financing. The combination of their platform with our technology and network complements our existing payments programs.”
Through this acquisition, Mastercard becomes a more strategic partner to both lenders and merchants, delivering a checkout experience that adds to Mastercard’s best-in-class security and convenience. Vyze’s proven technology better facilitates lending options to merchants’ customers, delivering a better shopping experience through financing approval rates up to 90 percent that are well above the industry average.
The end-to-end Vyze platform allows lenders and merchants to “integrate once and innovate forever” through the simple use of APIs. Previously, managing and maintaining a range of consumer payment and financing options would require significant time and investment.
“Shoppers looking for new ways to pay and merchants looking to sell higher ticket items and deter abandonments has driven a flurry of activity in the ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ market,” said Raymond Pucci, director of merchant services practice at Mercator Advisory Group. “This acquisition creates a new market making approach that supports operation at scale, helping banks offer and merchants shop for the terms that best fit their needs. Mastercard’s existing relationships will assure both take a serious look at this new solution.”
Several top U.S. retailers work with Vyze for special financing options. This proven track record will be used to bring the same functionality to customers in additional markets.
“Mastercard has a long history of building an incredibly powerful network, connecting some of the world’s most influential financial institutions, merchants and innovators,” said Keith Nealon, CEO of Vyze. “With their relationships and scale, we see a great opportunity to reach exponentially more partners and consumers.”