Disruption 2.0: FinTech Turns on Itself

Disruption

What is Embedded Finance?

Embedded finance is the seamless integration of financial services into non-financial platforms, enabling users to access financial solutions where they naturally interact. Traditionally, consumers and businesses sought financing through banks, requiring time-consuming processes. Embedded finance flips the script by embedding these services directly within the platforms where financial decisions occur.

Everyday Examples of Embedded Finance
    1. Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL): A familiar form of embedded finance, BNPL allows consumers to split payments at checkout without disrupting their shopping experience. Examples include platforms like Takealot, South Africa’s equivalent of Amazon, where options for credit card payments, EFTs, or BNPL products are embedded directly into the checkout process.
    2. Foreign Exchange (Forex): Businesses conducting international transactions often face costly currency conversions. Embedded Forex services offer better rates, streamlining transactions by embedding currency conversion options directly into platforms, making them particularly valuable for high-volume B2B transactions.

Embedded Lending: A Deeper Dive

While embedded finance encompasses a broad range of services, embedded lending zeroes in on providing financing options for high-value transactions. Yaakov Martin explains that embedded lending caters to individuals and businesses requiring more significant financial planning for products like home renovations, medical procedures, or large appliances.

How Embedded Lending Works

Embedded lending integrates loan options directly into a customer’s transaction process. Unlike BNPL, which typically splits payments over a few instalments, embedded lending focuses on longer-term, higher-value loans. This flexibility ensures that customers can access the funding they need without pausing their purchasing journey.

For example:

    • Consumers: Financing for elective medical procedures, such as orthodontics or hair transplants, becomes part of the clinic’s service offering.
    • Businesses: Companies needing to renovate office spaces or purchase expensive equipment can secure loans directly through their service providers’ platforms.

The Benefits of Embedded Lending

Embedded lending delivers significant advantages for all stakeholders:

  1. For Consumers
    • Convenience: No need to leave a platform to secure financing.
    • Optionality: Customers are empowered with flexible payment choices, enhancing their purchasing power.
    • Streamlined Experience: The process is simplified, reducing friction and making complex transactions accessible.
  1. For Merchants
    • Increased Sales: By offering financing options, merchants reduce barriers to purchase, resulting in higher conversion rates.
    • Customer Retention: Embedding finance reduces cart abandonment by keeping customers within the platform.
    • Competitive Edge: Merchants can differentiate themselves by offering tailored financing solutions.
  1. For Financial Institutions
    • Market Expansion: Embedded lending opens doors to untapped markets by integrating with merchants.
    • Customer Insights: Institutions gain valuable data on consumer behaviour and purchasing trends.
    • Streamlined Processes: Automated underwriting and approvals improve efficiency and reduce overhead costs.

Embedded Finance Across Sectors

E-commerce and Retail

Platforms like Takealot and global giants such as Amazon and Shopify embed BNPL options, allowing customers to split payments seamlessly. These services not only enhance the customer experience but also drive higher sales volumes.

Healthcare

Medical providers are increasingly embedding financing options for elective and essential procedures. For instance, patients can access loans for orthodontic treatments or surgeries without navigating complex third-party applications.

B2B Transactions

Businesses conducting large-scale purchases or currency conversions benefit from embedded Forex services. These integrations ensure smoother operations and significant cost savings.

The Role of Technology in Embedded Lending

Technological innovation underpins embedded lending, enabling platforms to offer financial services that are fast, intuitive, and secure. Key features include:

    • Automated Underwriting: Real-time credit assessments based on consumer data.
    • Seamless APIs: Integration with third-party platforms for a cohesive user experience.
    • Customised Solutions: Tailored lending products based on transaction types and customer needs.

Future Trends in Embedded Finance and Lending

Regulatory Oversight

As embedded lending gains traction, regulatory frameworks are evolving to ensure consumer protection and fair lending practices. BNPL, once considered unregulated, is now subject to scrutiny in many jurisdictions.

Global Expansion

Embedded lending is expanding beyond developed markets, offering financial inclusivity in regions like Africa and Asia. Platforms are adapting to meet the unique needs of these markets, such as mobile-first solutions and micro-lending.

Increased Adoption in B2B

Businesses increasingly rely on embedded lending for procurement, inventory financing, and international transactions. This trend is set to grow as more industries embrace digital transformation.

What Makes Jifiti Unique in the Embedded Lending Space?

Unlike traditional lenders, Jifiti doesn’t carry balance sheet risk. Instead, they act as a pure technology enabler, connecting the three key stakeholders—banks, merchants, and consumers—to facilitate seamless transactions in real time. This approach allows banks to focus on what they do best, such as underwriting and managing risk, while merchants and consumers benefit from streamlined, efficient processes.

Key Differentiator: The “Triangle” Model

Jifiti’s technology enables the dynamic interaction of the three stakeholders:

  1. Banks provide the funds and focus on responsible lending.
  2. Merchants enhance their offerings at the point of sale.
  3. Consumers enjoy a simplified, frictionless borrowing process.

This model is particularly valuable for banks aiming to digitise their services without building new infrastructure from scratch.

Empowering Banks with Technology

Supporting Incumbents in the Digital Age

One of Jifiti’s core missions is empowering traditional financial institutions to embrace digital transformation. While fintech disruptors often build proprietary technology and handle lending, Jifiti partners with established players to bridge the gap. This collaboration ensures that banks leverage their strengths—compliance, trust, and low capital costs—while Jifiti provides the tools to compete with modern fintech solutions.

Benefits for Banks:
  • Cost Efficiency: Incumbent banks often have lower capital costs due to deposits, enabling them to offer better loan terms.
  • Regulatory Compliance: Strict regulations ensure consumer protection and ethical practices.
  • Scalable Solutions: Jifiti’s technology integrates seamlessly with banks’ existing systems, enabling them to scale quickly.

Rethinking Point-of-Sale Lending

Traditional Challenges

Historically, in-store financing posed numerous challenges:

  • Cumbersome application processes requiring sensitive information to be shared in public.
  • Lack of clarity regarding approval, often leading to a “walk of shame” when denied.
  • Limited integration between merchants and financial institutions, resulting in inefficiencies.

Jifiti’s Innovative Approach

Jifiti revolutionised point-of-sale lending by placing control in the hands of consumers. Here’s how:

  1. Mobile-First Experience: Customers can scan a QR code upon entering a store, complete the application on their device, and receive real-time credit approval—all privately.
  2. Virtual Cards: Once approved, customers receive a virtual card preloaded with their credit limit. This card can be used immediately at checkout, ensuring a seamless and discreet experience.
  3. Merchant-Friendly: The process requires minimal staff training and integrates effortlessly with existing systems.

Online vs In-Store Experiences

The Online Advantage

Online shopping naturally lends itself to embedded lending:

  • Data-Driven Personalisation: Platforms can offer financing options tailored to individual customers.
  • Ease of Access: Consumers can explore payment options without pressure.
  • Enhanced Discoverability: Financing offers can be highlighted early in the shopping journey, encouraging higher-value purchases.

Overcoming In-Store Challenges

In-store shopping traditionally lacked these advantages, but Jifiti’s innovations close the gap:

  • Privacy and Discretion: Consumers handle applications independently on their devices.
  • Seamless Checkout: The use of virtual cards eliminates the need for staff involvement or additional hardware.
  • Proactive Engagement: Financing options are presented as soon as customers enter the store, empowering them to make informed purchasing decisions.

Fintech Disruption: From Challenger to Enabler

The Pendulum Effect

The fintech wave disrupted traditional banking by proving that financial services could be seamless and scalable. However, these players often lacked the regulatory standing, trust, and underwriting power of traditional banks. As the pendulum swings back, fintech enablers like Jifiti are helping banks reclaim their space by combining fintech agility with banking reliability.

What Jifiti Proves:

  • Collaboration between banks and fintechs can drive innovation.
  • Fintech solutions can complement, rather than compete with, traditional banking.

The Future of Embedded Lending

As embedded lending evolves, its potential applications extend beyond retail to sectors like healthcare, travel, and real estate. Future trends include:

  • AI-Powered Underwriting: Real-time credit assessments using advanced algorithms.
  • Global Expansion: Bringing embedded lending to underserved markets with high growth potential.
  • Cross-Industry Collaboration: Expanding partnerships between banks, fintechs, and merchants to create new revenue streams.

 

Jifiti’s embedded lending solutions illustrate the power of collaboration between fintechs and traditional banks. By leveraging Jifiti’s technology, banks can enhance their digital transformation efforts, merchants can increase sales, and consumers can access credit seamlessly and securely.

FAQ's

Embedded lending integrates loans and financing options directly within the purchasing process of non-financial businesses, allowing consumers to access credit seamlessly at the point of need. Unlike BNPL, which typically offers short-term, interest-free instalments for smaller purchases, embedded lending encompasses a broader range of financial products, including longer-term loans and lines of credit, catering to various customer profiles and larger ticket items. 

Jifiti’s platform supports a wide array of B2C and B2B financial products traditionally offered by banks, such as instalment loans, lines of credit, split payments, and deferred invoices. This flexibility allows lenders and merchants to cater to diverse customer needs and use cases.

Jifiti’s platform enables banks and lenders to embed their loan programmes at any point of sale, providing a seamless, fully branded customer experience. This approach helps in acquiring new customers, deepening existing relationships, and scaling loan programmes efficiently across various markets.

Yes, Jifiti’s platform is designed to support omnichannel integration, including online, in-store, call centres, and assisted sales flows. This flexibility ensures that customers have access to financing options regardless of the purchasing channel they choose.