Allianz Trade, the world leader in trade credit insurance, Two, the pioneering business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce payments platform, and Santander Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), one of the Top Trade Finance banks in the banking sector, have partnered to create the first global B2B Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) solution for large multinational corporates.
The first partnership of its kind, the solution offers a one-stop solution to offer business buyers instant deferred payments at checkout. With a single API integration powered by Two, Santander CIB finances upfront payments to sellers and credit terms to buyers globally while Allianz Trade protects the whole value chain against non-payment risk (e.g. including credit risk). Sellers will have global multi-currency support to reduce the need for complex operating models with multiple providers across technology, trade insurance, and trade credit.
François Burtin, Global Head of e-commerce at Allianz Trade, said: “We’re very proud to join forces with Two and Santander CIB to provide a complete deferred payment solution for B2B e-commerce. Our solution will be distributed worldwide and aims to allow large corporates to develop their online sales by offering deferred payments to existing and new customers, without being exposed to non-payment risks, while benefiting from immediate and guaranteed payments. It is a turnkey solution combining the very best of our three firms, easy to set up and improving both seller revenue and user experience.”
Ignacio Frutos Lopez, Global Head Receivables at Banco Santander CIB, added: “The fact that buyers have to use personal or corporate credit cards is still hindering B2B transactions. Enabling businesses to maintain their payment habits within 30 or 60 days of their invoices, in an ecommerce environment, will be a big differentiator for sellers, while adding a major game-changer. All concerns about non-payment risk are now removed, and their cash flow is preserved at all times. Thanks to the service we’ve created along with Allianz Trade, Two and Marsh Spain, large corporates will now be able to enjoy the BNPL product to grow their online activity safely and globally.”
Allianz Trade and Two had partnered earlier this year to offer a B2B BNPL solution for SMEs’ in the UK, while at the same time Allianz Trade and Santander were working on large BNPL projects. The large corporate segment is currently undertaking major online projects to grow B2B ecommerce sales and improve margins.
Stavros Tamvakakis, Co-Founder of Two, commented: “At Two we are obsessed about delivering seamless ordering and buying for B2B buyers while removing and automating the operational processes for sellers. Business buying is not a one-size fits all and our product streamlines key steps in the journey (including instant onboarding, ordering, underwriting, invoice distribution, payments, reconciliation) so that sellers do what they do best while we abstract the pain points of drop-offs, working capital tie up, risk, and manual work. Our ambitions are at a global scale, so we decided to take our partnership with Allianz Trade further by collaborating with Santander CIB, combining two powerhouses in insurance and banking to create a unique and innovative solution dedicated to large corporates.”
