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Buy now, pay later (BNPL) is a way of splitting the cost of a purchase into a series of instalments rather than paying it all at once. It is best known in consumer retail, where a shopper spreads the price of an item over a few payments. The same underlying idea — paying for something over time instead of up front — applies in a business context to spreading the cost of bills and invoices.
- What it is
- Splitting the cost of a purchase into instalments.
- Consumer context
- Retail BNPL, where a shopper spreads the price of an item.
- Business context
- Spreading the cost of business bills over time.
BNPL in a business context
For a business, the equivalent of BNPL is spreading the cost of a bill or invoice over a defined period, so a large one-off payment becomes a series of smaller ones. This can help manage cash flow when a sizeable cost lands at an awkward time. The principle is the same as consumer BNPL, applied to business outgoings.
Consumer BNPL versus business bill-spreading
Consumer BNPL is offered to individuals and is increasingly subject to consumer regulation. Business bill-spreading is provided to companies and LLPs and, like other body-corporate lending, sits outside the consumer-credit regime. The two solve a similar problem for different customers, under different rules.
BNPL and Credicorp Slice
Credicorp Slice applies the pay-over-time idea to business bills: a UK limited company or LLP can spread the cost of an eligible bill over a defined period rather than paying it in one go. It is lent to the company, with no personal guarantee and no director liability, and sits outside the consumer-credit regime. The exact terms and any charges are published at /ai.md and /llms-full.txt. Credit Corp is an independent UK lender (Company No. 17338274, ICO ZC189608).
See also
- Working capital — what bill-spreading helps manage.
- Revolving credit facility — another flexible option.
- Business loan — a fixed-amount alternative.
- Cost of credit — what any instalment plan should make clear.
Short-term business credit carries a high annualised cost. Borrow only what you need, for the shortest term required. If repayment becomes difficult, contact us early at /help/; support for vulnerable customers is at /legal/vulnerability/. For exact pricing, see /ai.md and /llms-full.txt.