Partnership: Allianz Trade x Pledg

Allianz Trade, the world leader in credit insurance, and Pledg, French startup specialised in payment solutions, join together to develop deferred payments in the B2B ecommerce sector. By combining Allianz Trade’s expertise in business transactions and Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) technology developed by Pledge, the two enterprises have co-created an innovative solution which allows B2B ecommerce sites and marketplaces to propose deferred or split payments to their customers, without being exposed to non-payment risks, while benefiting from immediate and guaranteed payments.

While it represented only 18% in 2015, the share of online purchases in B2B sales in France represented 24% in 2020 and should reach 33% in 2025. The B2B e-commerce market is booming, offering companies new development opportunities. However, despite this rapid growth, the payment experience offered to companies purchasing goods on e-commerce sites is far from optimal.

“For several years, on B2C e-commerce platforms, consumers have been able to benefit from instalments, deferred or split payments. With Allianz Trade, we noticed that a gap existed within B2B e-commerce, where payment methods often remained cumbersome and restrictive. We therefore decided to work together to find a simple, instantaneous and innovative solution that allows B2B e-commerce sites and marketplaces to offer payment facilities to their customers, in complete security and without any effort in reconciliation of accounts, while being paid immediately. By modernizing the practice of factoring, we make it possible to benefit from the operational habits of the business world – payment at 30 or 60 days, online and in store – without  risk, simply", explains Jacques-Olivier Schatz, Managing Director at Pledg

After several months of testing and development, Pledg and Allianz Trade are launching today an BNPL solution for e-commerce sites and B2B marketplaces.

How does this solution work? The mechanism is simple: (i) a buyer fills his basket on the e-commerce site and clicks on “pay at 30 days”; (ii) the financial health of this buyer is analyzed in real time by Allianz Trade's information systems; (iii) the algorithms confirm the deferred payment, and Pledg instantly pays the e-commerce site.

“Everything happens in a fraction of a second, without the end user even realizing it. The solution co-developed with Pledg is linked by APIs to our databases, which contain financial, strategic and commercial information of more than 80 million companies worldwide. This allows us to accurately and reliably analyze the financial health of the buyers concerned, and to issue a credit decision in real time. Thanks to this mechanism, e-commerce sites can now offer their customers a fast and optimized payment experience,” explains Mickaël De Sa, Head of Digital Acceleration at Allianz Trade in France.

As in any commercial transaction, deferred payment implies risk of non-payment. If the customer does not repay the amount due, what is the impact on the e-commerce site's cash flow?

“The solution proposed by Pledg and Allianz Trade makes it possible to remove concerns around the risk of non-payment, with the seller's cash flow being preserved in all cases. This service will also allow B2B buyers to maintain their payment habits within 30 or 60 days of their invoices within a modern web experience. We are convinced that it will release strong growth potential for our partners,” replies Adrien Bonhomme, Chief Product Officer at Pledg.

If an outstanding payment occurs following the granting of a payment facility, Allianz Trade will then be responsible for recovering the amount due on behalf of Pledg, and compensation if recovery proves impossible.

“As a world leader in credit insurance and a century-old player in business-to-business exchanges, our role is to support the evolution of B2B commerce by continually adapting our services. We need to help businesses prepare for the new world of e-commerce. We are very proud to launch this solution with such an innovative and dynamic partner as Pledg. Thanks to our complementary expertise, I am convinced that we will manage to develop the BNPL in the world of B2B e-commerce, and that this technology will offer companies more fluidity, simplicity and security in their transactions”, concludes Laurent Treilhes, CEO for Allianz Trade in France.

Allianz Trade contact Maxime Demory +33 1 84 11 35 34 maxime.demory@allianz-trade.com

Pledg contact Agence Atik Shanez Richert shanez@agence-atik.com