Amazon.com Inc. has started working with Mexican fintech company Kueski, which specializes in the providing of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service and personal loans, to offer consumers the opportunity to make payment transactions in installments every two weeks in the space of Latin America’s second-largest economy.
The specified partnership is the first time that Amazon, which is a global e-commerce giant and, according to many users and experts, one of the best delivery companies, will provide its Mexican customers with a solution to make purchases up to 12 times a fortnight without a credit card. In this case, Kueski will provide financing for the relevant operations.
The Mexican partner of the e-commerce giant will also determine the amount of credit provided to each consumer. This was announced by Andrew Seiz, head of the financial department of the fintech company, during a conversation with media representatives. According to him, the collaboration with Amazon is an exciting milestone, given that the e-commerce giant has the status of a significant merchant in the context of the scale of its activities in the Mexican market.
Andrew Seiz separately noted that as a result of this partnership, consumers who previously faced difficulties in accessing finance will be able to purchase goods on the platform of a global online retailer. He also drew attention to the fact that delinquencies in Mexico have so far been strictly controlled.
The mentioned Latin American country has become a very important market for startups whose activities are related to the provision of financial services. In this context, an important circumstance is that in Mexico less than 50% of the population has accounts in traditional financial institutions. Against this background, there is a demand for alternative offers related to the above-mentioned services.
Currently, in the Mexican market, some fintech companies that offer high-yield savings accounts to consumers compete with yields of 15%, which exceeds the key rate of the central bank of this country at 11.25%.
In December 2021, Kueski, as part of a Series C financing round led by StepStone Group Inc. and Victory Park Capital, raised $202 million to expand its operations. Andrew Seiz said that the company is constantly negotiating with existing investors. During his communication with media representatives, he did not provide details about the firm’s intentions to receive funding in the future.
Kueski started its business 12 years ago. Three years ago, the company launched the BNPL Kueski Pay service. Currently, the number of employees of the firm is 620 people. Over the entire period of its activity, the company has granted almost 15 million loans to consumers.
Andrew Seiz says that from a macroeconomic point of view, Mexico’s prospects can be described as very optimistic. In this context, he noted the good indicators of consumer demand for the solutions offered by Kueski. In his opinion, the Mexican market opens up significant opportunities for the company in the near and medium term. He also noted that Kueski will continue to focus on this country.
