Afterpay partners with Jetstar to offer buy now, pay later option on domestic flights

Sydney fintech Afterpay has announced a new partnership with Jetstar that will see the company’s ‘buy now, pay later’ solution become available to Jetstar customers.

The first airline to adopt Afterpay in Australia, Jetstar customers looking to book domestic flights and products will be able to access Afterpay as a payment option, allowing them to pay for their travel through four fortnightly instalments.

The option will be available on flights worth between $200 and $1,000 booked at least eight weeks in advance, with a service fee of $10 per transaction.

While the buy now, pay later option is only offered on domestic flights at the current time, the companies have said they are investigating extending the service to international flights.

Afterpay cofounder Nick Molnar said the agreement marks an opportunity for the startup to move into a “brand new product category”, and a market where customers are looking for new ways to complete payments.

“There has been a clear shift in millennials’ share of wallet towards the services industry and more specifically travel. We believe the demand for Afterpay in the travel market will be very strong,” said Molnar.

For Jetstar, Group CEO Jayne Hrdlicka said the company was excited about the partnership, adding that it would enable customers to travel more often.

“Partnering with Afterpay gives our customers the option to lock in low fares at today’s prices and pay over time, even during our sales,” she said.

“Many of Jetstar’s customers already use Afterpay to purchase items at various retailers and are familiar with the flexibility of paying over time.”

Afterpay’s agreement with the airline marks the third partnership for the business this year, with May seeing the fintech partner with New Zealand ecommerce platform Trade Me.

The deal marked the first partnership Afterpay has made internationally, with Afterpay Managing Director, Nick Molnar, saying the agreement will be provide an opportunity for the business to begin generating “strong returns” on its investments.

“It was very important for Afterpay to find a partner who was equally passionate about providing an unashamedly customer-centric product and from the outset Trade Me clearly understood our retail, rather than finance, approach,” Molnar said at the time.

February also saw the startup partner with payments company Tyro. Under the agreement, the 17,000 merchants using Tyro’s payment platform gained access to Afterpay, allowing them to offer it as an option to their customers.

Image: Jayne Hrdlicka. Source: Herald Sun.