Strategic partnerships between Rupifi and Retailio expands BNPL in the pharma sector in India

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Globally, the buy now pay later (BNPL) solution has become a prominent financing method over the last four to eight quarters. Key BNPL companies such as Klarna and Afterpay gained significant market share during this period. In India, the demand for deferred payment services, such as BNPL, followed similar global trends and gained momentum over the last few quarters, which has been primarily accelerated by the pandemic.

The coronavirus-induced economic changes drove consumers and businesses to look for better and flexible ways to fund their purchases. This is where the BNPL solution emerged as more than a convenient payment method, as it has reduced the financial burden on borrowers by providing flexible EMI options. Moreover, BNPL providers are increasingly looking at niche-focused partnerships to boost their growth, presence, as well as expansion. From e-commerce to the automotive, travel, and pharma industry, BNPL providers are entering into strategic partnerships globally. For instance,

In September 2021, the Indian lending financial technology firm Rupifi entered into a strategic partnership with Retailio, an Indian B2B pharma marketplace, to enable credit offerings for its pharma retailers. Founded in 2020, Rupifi offers BNPL services to SMEs on B2B marketplaces in India. The company is currently working with various partners across different industry segments such as food, fashion, electronics, agriculture, general merchandise, consumer goods, and pharma.

During the global pandemic, easy access to credit was a major obstacle for small retailers in India. This was particularly impacting those retailers who were operating in the healthcare and pharma industry. Therefore, Rupifi targeted these retailers who are looking to expand their business across India. With the company BNPL product, these retailers will get instant access to credit.

While Rupifi is just a one-year-old financial technology startup, the firm has built one of India's most robust SMEs BNPL products. The firm is currently offering thousands of small retailers in the country with its BNPL services. PayNXT360 expects the partnership with Retailio to further boost its growth and presence in the country over the next four to eight quarters.

Being the largest B2B healthcare marketplace in India, entering into a strategic partnership with Retailio is going to give a huge boost for Rupifi’s business from the short to medium-term perspective. Notably, Retailio has its presence in more than 100 cities around the country and also has a wide network that includes over 1,000 pharma and healthcare companies and 3,000 pharmaceutical distributors.

It is expected that with Retailio, Rupifi is likely to aim to simplify the credit requirement of the pharma industry by offering easy access to credit for their short-term purchases. Moreover, by offering up to 45 days of instant credit, this partnership will help Rupifi to grow its presence significantly in the B2B BNPL space over the next few quarters. Consequently, PayNXT360 expects more strategic BNPL partnerships to follow in the pharma industry from the short to medium-term perspective.