Zilla, the Buy-Now-Pay-Later company founded in 2021, has announced it would pause its buy now, pay later (BNPL) services in Nigeria and shift its focus to a new international B2B payment product called Zillawire. According to the company, it is pausing the BNPL offering because of high-interest rates and other challenges facing all consumer-facing products in the country.
An unnamed employee at Zilla who spoke with TechCabal, where the shutdown was first reported, said: "One of our biggest challenges has been that a lot of people don't understand how credit works and think it is about owing people. Most customers would rather wait until they have the full amount to pay than get one now and pay in instalments."
In light of the macroeconomic challenges facing consumer products in Nigeria, Zilla has shifted its focus to international B2B payments with Zillawire.
Zillawire is a product that aims to enable businesses to make payments to suppliers and partners in international markets.
Addressing its latest move, Zilla's CEO Tolu Abiodun said, "One thing that always was a problem for merchants that had to import product was the friction that existed with making international payments." "We felt that might be an opportunity for us to conquer."
According to the company's website, Zillawire enables businesses to fund their Naira wallets and transact with international suppliers using foreign currency. It includes favourable rates, a transparent fee structure, swift transaction processing and risk management tools that protect customers from currency fluctuations.
