Amazon Pay Lets Citi Card Members Pay Over Time

Citi credit card members can now pay over time thanks to a new partnership with Amazon Pay.

The buy now, pay later (BNPL) collaboration, announced Wednesday (April 26) is open to eligible Citi card members using the company’s Flex Pay, and marks the first time members can use Flex Pay through a digital wallet.

“Customers want flexible payment options and merchants want to offer that flexibility but don’t always have the resources to do so,” Omar Soudodi, director of Amazon Pay, said in a news release provided to PYMNTS.

The partnership, he added, “is a win-win for both customers and merchants — customers have a new, convenient way to pay for their purchases and merchants can seamlessly offer new and existing customers more choice, affordability, and flexibility in how they pay.”

According to the release, card members can pay over time when using Amazon Pay at a host of online retail sites.

Card members can choose payment plans of three to 48 months for purchases of $50 and up, with payments included in the card members regular minimum monthly payment.

The release notes that millions of customers have used Flex Pay on Amazon’s eCommerce platform. The companies first teamed to offer BNPL options on Amazon.com in 2020.

Soudodi’s assertion that consumers want flexible ways to pay for their goods is borne out by past reporting by PYMNTS.

As noted here earlier this year, studies have shown that 70% of shoppers spend more when using BNPL than they otherwise would have, while 47% of consumers choose merchants based on their partnerships with preferred BNPL providers.

However, merchants run the risk of losing customers if those BNPL options aren’t convenient. Research indicates that 32% of customers cite the speed of shopping as their top priority, followed by an independent shopping experience, mentioned by 27% of consumers.

“BNPL experiences across all channels must match these customer preferences to harness the increased profit that comes with this method,” PYMNTS wrote. “Deployed incorrectly, BNPL has the potential to sabotage the experience by forcing customers to enter their BNPL service provider sign-ins or perform additional steps at checkout, leading to delays.”

Amazon Pay’s partnership with Citi follows last month’s debut of Amazon Pay’s Express Payout, designed to give merchants quicker access to working capital. The feature lets businesses get deposits of up to $1 million in 24 hours.

“With this new feature, merchants can reap the benefits of their sales and tackle the unexpected costs of expanding their business in an ever-evolving economic climate — with payouts at the fast speed Amazon is known for,” Soudodi said.