Pine Labs, Visa Partner to Expand Instalment Solutions in Southeast Asia

To improve payment flexibility, Indian FinTech Pine Labs has teamed up with Visa to introduce Visa Instalment Solutions (VIS) on its multi-issuer payment platform.

In the past, merchants had to register with various issuers and set up several payment terminals to handle installment transactions at the point of sale. The partnership between Pine Labs and Visa will provide merchants greater flexibility and cost-effectiveness to present smooth instalment payment solutions for both domestic and international transactions. Southeast Asian merchants, such as Courts, Hooga, and Chicco, will have the capability to offer this combined instalment solution.

Visa Instalment Solutions will initially roll out on Pine Labs’ network of merchants in Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines, followed by Thailand, Indonesia, and additional Southeast Asian markets.

Dheeraj Chowdhry, Chief Business Officer – SEA, Pine Labs, said, “This collaboration plays on the strength of Visa’s vast global network and Pine Labs’ tech capabilities to provide flexible and intuitive instalment payment options for consumers. Facilitating consumer finance on already approved credit lines using their existing credit cards is expected to be a win-win for cardholders and merchants. It empowers merchants and direct brands to boost ticket and basket size by taking the transaction up the affordability curve. This is further amplified by enablement of cross-border instalments during purchase – a feature that will be a ‘market-first’ across the instalments landscape.”

Commenting on the partnership, Kim Hak J, Head of Products & Solution for Regional Southeast Asia, Visa, said, “According to Visa’s Green Shoots Radar Study, the usage of instalment solutions in Southeast Asia is significantly higher than the Asia-Pacific average. The same study showed that over the past two years, we have observed a notable increase in instalment payments usage, particularly in Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines. This trend underscores the growing preference for flexible payment options among consumers in these markets, and we are excited to support this demand through our partnership with Pine Labs.”

As a participant in the program, Harry Higashiura, Chief Executive Officer, Courts Malaysia and Singapore, said, “As the leading omni-channel retailer in electrical, IT and furniture products across Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, we see demand for instalments when it comes to customer purchases. We are thrilled to participate in this initiative by Visa and Pine Labs to enable our customers with more options to pay for their purchases across our stores in the region.”