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Explore financing options for home improvement contractors. Find the best solution for boosting revenue and streamlining operations.

Searching for top prime home improvement financing partners in 2025? Compare lenders and see why ChargeAfter is the go-to multi-lender platform for contractors.

We are thrilled to announce that ChargeAfter has been nominated for 4 prestigious Furniture Today Reader Ranking Awards. The nominations reflect the success of our embedded lending platform in delivering financing personalization and choice to merchants’ points of sale, thanks to our phenomenal team’s hard work and dedication. 

How to vote ChargeAfter

If you want to see ChargeAfter recognized for its industry-leading platform, we would appreciate it if you would take a moment to vote. It only takes a couple of minutes. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Visit Furniture Today Reader Rankings 
   
2. Head to the “Technology” category:
   Vote ChargeAfter for Best Software Provider (3rd award down, 3rd row)
3. Continue to the “Finance” category:
   Vote ChargeAfter for Best Banking Services Provider
   Vote ChargeAfter for Best Consumer Finance Company

You can vote every day until October 4th!

Thank you for being part of our journey. Let’s bring home these wins together!

Join us at the MAG Payments Conference, September 16-19, 2024, at the Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnett Creek in Orlando, FL.

Are you among the 78% of merchants prioritizing POS financing in the next 12-18 months*? If so, let’s connect! Our team is heading to MAG Payments and is available to discuss your POS financing challenges and see how our multi-lender waterfall platform can help you maximize your point-of-sale financing potential. Visit us at booth 214 or schedule a meeting with us. Swing by and you have a chance of winning a cool prize!

Panel Discussion

We are excited to invite you to attend our panel discussion Check your Balances: How Financial Inclusion is Defining a Generation with some of the biggest names in the industry.  

• Meidad Sharon – CEO & Founder, ChargeAfter
• Jai Holtz – Vice President, Financial Services, Best Buy
• Jay Waters, Senior Director Financial Services, Lowe’s Company Inc.
• Nate Roe, Chief Commercial Officer, Progressive Leasing
• Moderator: Josh Pynn – Senior Manager, Payments Content, Merchant Advisory Group

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

3:05 PM – 3:55 PM

We look forward to connecting at the MAG Payments Conference. 

Only 2% of merchants achieve approval rates above 80%, a sharp decline from 12%  last year.

Point-of-sale (POS) financing has become a crucial resource for shoppers to purchase the goods they want without relying on credit cards and for retailers to enhance customer satisfaction and drive sales. We conducted our second annual survey to understand how merchants are meeting their customers’ financing needs and the challenges they face. The results shed light on the current state of POS financing, revealing an over 50% increase in merchants reporting below 60% approval rates.

Key Findings

Among the key findings, the survey discovered that an average of 40% of annual gross merchant value (GMV) is attributed to financing. Despite the crucial role of consumer financing in sales revenue, most merchants are struggling with approval rates, which have sharply declined compared to last year. In 2024, only 2% of merchants are achieving approval rates above 80%, a sharp decline from last year’s 12%

Retailers recognize the need to address these declining approval rates with 78% of respondents saying that point-of-sale financing is a strategic priority over the next 12 months. 

Unlock the Full Report

For a deeper dive into the survey’s findings, download the full report “Point-of-Sale Financing: Key Trends and Retailer Insights 2024 – 2025 here. 

About Varda Bachrach
Varda has over 20 years of experience in marketing, content, and communications, most recently in fintech start ups where she loves simplifying complex messages.

With consumer finance projected to reach $15 trillion by 2025 (GlobalData, 2021), stringent regulatory frameworks are needed to ensure stability and protect consumers. The rapid expansion of digital financial services, highlighted by the surge of point-of-sale financing, emphasizes the importance of robust regulatory measures. 

As banks expand their lending models and reenter the consumer financing market, their strict regulatory frameworks and compliance expertise provide a significant competitive advantage. Banks have been lending institutions for centuries, offering various loans including mortgages, personal, consumer, and business loans. Over the years, they have developed robust compliance processes and deep regulatory expertise, especially compared to fintech companies such as BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) providers, many of whom are new to lending.

Regulatory Scrutiny in Consumer Finance

As the consumer finance sector has grown in popularity and scale, it has inevitably drawn the attention of regulatory bodies. Both the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) have issued guidance and reports related to BNPL lending, emphasizing the need for prudent practices and robust consumer protection measures. These regulatory efforts aim to address the increasing demand for consumer protection and financial stability in this rapidly expanding, unregulated sector. 

Banks, with their extensive history of adapting to regulatory changes and ensuring compliance, are well-positioned to navigate these new standards, in contrast to BNPL providers which have been functioning without regulation and are going to have to play catch up. Additionally, BNPLs lack direct access to funds via customer deposits and the Federal Reserve further strengthens the banks’ position.

Beyond Compliance: Deep Understanding and Capacity

Banks’ experience with regulatory compliance goes beyond merely following rules; it encompasses a deep understanding of the rationale behind regulations, such as protecting consumers, ensuring fair practices, and maintaining the financial system’s integrity. They can anticipate regulatory changes in response to external and other contributing factors, for example advances in technology or issues affecting the economy, and proactively adapt their strategies and seamlessly integrate new requirements into their operations. Additionally, banks have dedicated teams and systems to monitor regulatory changes, assess their impact, and implement necessary adjustments. This institutional capacity for regulatory adaptation is crucial in an environment where financial regulations are increasingly complex and far-reaching.

Building Trust Through Compliance

Banks’ adherence to regulatory and compliance standards and stability reinforce trust among consumers and merchants. This trust is crucial in newer financing areas like consumer finance, where customers and merchants are still gauging the credibility and reliability of different financial providers. Banks can leverage their compliance expertise to differentiate themselves and position their financial products as better, safer, and more reliable. By doing so, compliance becomes a key part of the value proposition that banks offer to merchants and their customers. 

Conclusion: Compliance as a Strategic Asset

The established processes for regulatory compliance in consumer financing are more than an operational requirement; with the introduction of regulations, it is becoming a strategic must. Fintechs and innovative financing models in the consumer financing space are under increasing scrutiny, while banks, with their long history and deep expertise in compliance, are uniquely positioned to navigate the complex regulatory landscape and provide a stable and trustworthy option for consumers and merchants alike. 

Jeffrey Tower

EVP Global Business Development

Jeff has over 20 years of experience driving revenue through building global brand awareness, business development, marketing, and sales departments focused on consumer financing, fintech, and eCommerce.

Point-of-sale financing is evolving to play a strategic role for merchants that contributes to improved sales conversion and customer loyalty. The prequalification process presents the perfect opportunity for retailers to convert browsers into buyers. By simplifying the process, retailers establish a foundation for customer loyalty which in turn can lead to long-term business growth.

To leverage the potential of point of sale financing, leading merchants are increasingly opting for a multiple lender platform-first approach. In addition to meeting customer needs, its back office capabilities make it easier for merchants to manage the end to end process while offering lender redundancy, greater control, and financing data and analytics. 

At ChargeAfter, the embedded lending platform for point-of-sale financing, we are dedicated to optimizing performance to help merchants that harness our platform better serve their customers and improve the bottom line. 

The importance of checkout optimization

The ChargeAfter checkout team is dedicated to designing and implementing a user experience that maximizes conversion rates. By refining and optimizing the prequalification process for point-of-sale financing, the team aims to encourage more customers to complete their purchases. “More applications mean more opportunities for customers to make a purchase,” Anna Peters, Director of Product, Consumer Experience explains, highlighting the direct link between the checkout experience and sales performance.

Experimentation: the key to continuous improvement

The primary goal of the team is to increase conversion rates or, at the very least, ensure that any changes do not negatively impact these rates or the customer experience. The approach to experimenting with the checkout process is meticulous and data-driven. “Deciding on an experiment is a very thoughtful process,” explains Anna. The team starts by clearly defining the challenge they aim to solve, formulating hypotheses, and identifying supportive data. Then, they outline the metrics needed to measure impact, plan the design, development, and rollout phases, and finally, conduct the experiment.

These experiments are crucial for making informed decisions, allowing ChargeAfter to move beyond opinions and rely on actual user data. This approach has led to significant improvements, with some experiments yielding a conversion rate increase of 5% to 12%.

Challenges and solutions in experimentation

The path to optimization is not without its challenges. Interpreting results and managing internal expectations can be complex tasks. The team addresses these challenges by maintaining clear communication and setting realistic expectations based on data and previous outcomes.

The impact of experiments

The experiments conducted by ChargeAfter have had a tangible positive impact on both the customer experience and merchant Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). For instance, one experiment tested whether starting the flow without an overview screen of how ChargeAfter’s product works could affect application submissions. The result was a remarkable 12% increase in submissions.

Another set of experiments focused on the impact of improved messaging and visuals regarding the no credit score impact feature on various screens throughout the checkout process. While the overall change in conversion was neutral across all merchants, this was seen as a positive outcome since there was no degradation in conversion rates. Moreover, some individual merchants saw increases, with one furniture merchant experiencing a 4% rise in conversion, indicating a successful adjustment to a new, more effective baseline.

The role of merchant involvement

Merchant involvement is crucial in shaping these experiments. According to Anna, partners are not only supportive but eagerly anticipate the results of these tests. This collaborative approach ensures that experiments are aligned with merchants’ goals and customer needs, leading to mutually beneficial outcomes.

Conclusion: a collaborative path to improvement

These experiments highlight the power of data-driven experimentation in optimizing the checkout experience. By focusing on the user experience and continuously testing and refining their approach, ChargeAfter is helping merchants increase conversion rates and, ultimately, sales. These efforts underscore the importance of embracing innovation and collaboration to meet the ever-changing demands of consumers and the marketplace.

About Varda Bachrach
Varda has over 20 years of experience in marketing, content, and communications, most recently in fintech start ups where she loves simplifying complex messages.