Australian Zip reflects on crypto trading option as BNPL race intensifies

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* Zip aims to launch crypto trading in Australia and the United States

* Rename the American unit to group it under a single global brand

* Stocks slide 6% as volumes, earnings lack estimates

July 22 (Reuters) – Australian buy now, pay later (BNPL) Zip Co Ltd is looking to provide users with the ability to trade cryptocurrency, co-founder Peter Gray said on Thursday, as Established industry players are testing new areas of business to fuel growth.

With the United States driving its growth in the fourth quarter and the country soon to become its largest market in terms of volumes, Zip said it will likely launch the new service there and in Australia within the next 12 months. month.

Gray said that trading crypto using Zip digital wallets is one of the most requested new product features by users, but did not give more details on how the trade works.

The company is looking to close ranks with bigger rivals Afterpay and Klarna, which are expanding into more countries and preparing new offerings as the BNPL sector attracts names with deep pockets like PayPal and apparently Apple.

As competition intensifies, Afterpay announced earlier this month that it would launch a banking app in October.

The rush of big players shows the popularity the industry gained during the pandemic as young buyers sought easier access to credit.

We know our younger generation of customers are looking for additional products and services that are relevant to them, Gray told Reuters.

He said a wider range of products, such as budgeting tools for Zip users, would likely be launched first in Australia, given that the market is mature and around 30% of adults have a BNPL account.

As Zips’ global expansion accelerates with deals with companies in Europe and the Middle East, the company said its US unit, Quadpay, will be renamed Zip to consolidate the brand under one name.

Zip’s shares, however, fell 7% as its fourth-quarter volume and revenue more than doubled, but missed some analysts’ expectations.

The group’s trading volumes reached A $ 1.76 billion ($ 1.29 billion) in the June quarter, missing estimates from UBS and RBC Capital Markets, even as its unit’s volumes American have quadrupled. ($ 1 = AU $ 1.3600) (Reporting by Nikhil Kurian Nainan in Bangalore; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

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