8 Emerging BNPL Startups Shaking Up the Fintech Industry

Phone that shows buy now pay later on the screen.

Here at Startup Savant, we love startup culture. That’s why we identified the most exciting, innovative, and creative buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) startups within the fintech space to watch in 2023 and beyond. From white-label offerings to niche specializations— these are the top BNPL companies to follow. 

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Top BNPL Companies to Watch

Every year, new startups pull to the forefront of their industry through exciting innovation and industry-disrupting business models. We’ve rounded up the most exciting BNPL startups of 2023 that startup-lovers, investors, and aspiring entrepreneurs should follow. 

Disclaimer: With so many exciting startups launching and growing worldwide, we aren’t able to cover them all. Furthermore, the startups that are listed below are not officially ranked and are listed in no particular order.

1. ZoodPay

Location: Lausanne, Switzerland
Funding: Series B, $48 Million

ZoodPay offers both online and in-store shoppers the option to pay off their purchases over 90 days in up to four installments. Within this period, no interest or fees are charged. The startup focuses specifically on the largely untapped buy-now-pay-later markets in Central Asia and MENA.

2. Aplazo

Location: Mexico City, Mexico
Funding: Venture - Series Unknown, $42.3 Million 

Aplazo is a Mexican startup providing a BNPL service that gives approved customers five fortnightly interest-free payments at affiliated online and physical stores. 

3. Addi

Location: Bogota, Columbia
Funding: Series C, $376.3 Million

Addi is a Latin American startup with its roots in Colombia and expansion plans that include Mexico and Brazil. The innovative startup has predominantly focused on the online shopping space and will need to put its funding to good use as it faces some stiff competition from competitors in these regions.

4. April (Previously Limepay)

Location: Sydney, Australia
Funding: Venture, $27 Million

April holds a rather unique spot in the BNPL startup lineup as it touts itself as a "white label" buy-now-pay-later product. As such, April allows its customers to brand their product as their own offering, providing retailers with in-house finance products without the hassle of developing their own software.

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5. Scalapay

Location: Milan, Italy
Funding: Series B, $727.5 Million

Scalapay is a fintech startup that is making waves despite a slow start in the BNPL space. Since its launch in 2019, the company has expanded its services to nine European countries. Its offering includes online and in-store purchases with three installments and zero interest. 

6. Zilch

Location: London, United Kingdom
Funding: Non-equity Assistance, $389.3 Million

Zilch differentiates itself from many in this space in that it doesn't only provide its services at retailers with which an agreement has been made. This has been the downfall for many BNPL startups, as customers don't always find the curated list of stores offered comprehensive enough for their needs. By providing the freedom of using the service anywhere the customer chooses to shop, Zilch is very likely to see a far greater uptake.

7. Billie

Location: Berlin, Germany
Funding: Debt Financing, $349.2 Million

Billie focuses on the B2B space, but the major gamechanger for this startup has been its partnership with Klarna. The Scandinavian fintech company Klarna has exploded in the BNPL B2C space in the last few years and when it sought to expand its offering into B2B, Billie was seemingly the obvious option.

8. Bumper

Location: London, United Kingdom
Funding: Series A, $46.4 Million

Bumper definitely takes the title of "most unique offering" on our list, with the sole focus of this BNPL startup being automotive purchases. The company makes repair and maintenance costs for vehicles more manageable by offering terms at zero interest. Not only is it touted as unique, but its CEO, James Jackson, also claims it has been profitable from the outset — an impressive startup achievement.