Ahead of its imminent launch in the US, London based fintech Zilch has joined the Financial Technology Association (FTA) in order to prioritise innovation through responsible products and services.
Zilch offers alternative credit options without charging their customers interest or fees, using open banking data, CSR data and behavioural data technologies to make consumer lending decisions when a transaction goes through. The fintech firm was also one of the first buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) providers in the UK to be regulated, and doubles down on the fact that financial health and education is at the core of their business model.
Surpassing two million users in just 18 months, Zilch joins 20 other fintechs at the FTA after creating BNPL 2.0 and forming partnerships to offer this service at up to 40 million locations, or anywhere Mastercard is accepted. Zilch also allows its customers to Pay in 1 and earn instant rewards or Pay in 4 over six weeks with zero interest and zero fees.
The FTA also represents other BNPL providers Afterpay, Figure, Klarna, Sezzle, and Zip and earlier this year, submitted a comment letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau noting how its BNPL members are committed to ensuring access to responsible payment options.
Philip Belamant, CEO and co-founder of Zilch, says: “Zilch was one of the first BNPL providers in the UK to be regulated as financial health is built into the core of our business model. With this in mind, we are excited to be working with the Financial Technology Association as a voice for us and the industry at large in Washington.”
Belamant continues: “This is such a crucial time, with economic volatility creating a cost of living crisis, consumers need access to innovative options to pay and awareness of better alternatives for more responsible spending and lending. We’re excited to partner with like-minded fintech companies to advocate for modernized financial policies that enable responsible, consumer-friendly innovation.”