Michigan’s Financial Plus CU Launches BNPL for Debit Transactions

Financial Plus Credit Union in Flint, Mich., has launched a Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) service for its members, according to an announcement from the $1.3 billion credit union Monday.

Members can now view and accept pre-qualified offers to access split payments on eligible debit card transactions within Financial Plus’ digital banking platform, the credit union said. Financial Plus partnered with the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based equipifi, a provider of a white-label BNPL solution to financial institutions that integrates with leading banking cores and digital banking platforms, to power its BNPL offering.

“Financial Plus Credit Union is committed to helping our members reach their highest potential,” Brad Bergmooser, president/CEO for Financial Plus, said. “By launching Buy Now, Pay Later with equipifi, we’re empowering our members to utilize a personalized budgeting tool in their digital banking app, providing them with greater financial flexibility.”

Bryce Deeney, CEO and co-founder of equipifi, added, “Buy Now, Pay Later is a financial service that consumers want and are increasingly expecting from their primary financial institutions. By launching this service, Financial Plus Credit Union is committing to meet their members wherever they need in the purchasing journey.”

According to equipifi’s website, more than 30 credit unions have already partnered with the vendor and more than 600 have actively been exploring BNPL for their members this year.

Another one of equipifi’s recent credit union partners is USF Federal Credit Union ($1.1 billion, Tampa, Fla.), which announced the partnership in June 2024, noting that it was the first credit union in Florida to launch a BNPL solution.

“Our members trust us to provide solutions that will improve their lives, and they seek financial flexibility,” Richard Sellwood, COO for USF FCU, said at the time of the announcement. “equipifi’s BNPL platform helps us provide our members’ preferred payment method in their mobile banking app, and helps us to meet them where they are at any time in their financial journey.”

A survey of 1,200 U.S. consumers conducted by TransUnion in the second quarter of 2024 revealed high satisfaction with BNPL services. According to the survey, 85% of BNPL users would recommend such loans to others, and three in four BNPL users expect such loans will impact their credit scores positively. What’s more, TransUnion said more than 100 million consumers have already used BNPL, and according to its research, nearly 40% of those who haven’t used these loans are likely or very likely to use them in the future.