Paypal founder raises US$100m for new payments startup

[WASHINGTON] Affirm, a startup led by PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, said Thursday it secured US$100 million in financing to expand its consumer lending business that aims to disrupt the credit card industry.

The financial tech company said it had obtained the line of credit from investment bank Morgan Stanley.

That brings Affirm's financing to over US$400 million, according to the online database Crunchbase.

A company statement said Affirm "will leverage the facility to continue its expansion of consumer-friendly point-of-sale financing at leading online and offline retailers."

The startup "offers consumers an alternative to traditional credit with a straightforward, transparent loan product," according tot he statement.

Consumers can finance purchases through Affirm, which sets interest rates based on "proprietary technology to verify identity and assess credit risk in seconds".

By using more sources of information than conventional credit rating agencies, Affirm can serve "to a broader set of consumers," the company says.

Affirm said it has agreements with more than 750 merchants. It offers retailers an advantage over credit card payments by assuming fraud risk and guaranteeing immediate payment.

Mr Levchin was a co-founder of PayPal, which was sold to eBay in 2002 for US$1.5 billion and later spun off.

AFP