JCB Co., Ltd. (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Ichiro Hamakawa; "JCB") and Net Protections, Inc. (headquartered in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Shin Shibata; "Net Protections") will begin promoting the introduction of Net Protections’ Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) service to nationwide franchisees*1.
*1) A franchisee is a financial institution or its affiliate that entered into a franchise agreement with JCB to issue JCB cards and conduct franchisee business.
Background and purpose of the partnership
JCB and Net Protections entered into a capital and business partnership in February 2021 and, as a first step in a concrete initiative, began introducing Net Protections' BNPL service to JCB member stores in August 2021. Through this partnership, the companies promoted the BNPL service in all B2C and B2B markets, meeting the diverse needs of member stores and users in their payment operations. With this track record, JCB decided to introduce Net Protections' BNPL service to its franchisees*2, which are affiliated with financial institutions nationwide, in order to further strengthen promotion of the service.
Through this initiative, the companies will promote the introduction of the BNPL service on a nationwide scale to increase sales at member stores, improve operational efficiency, and enhance convenience for users.
*2) Promotion of the BNPL service at franchisees that have agreed to this initiative.
Services
NP Atobarai
"NP Atobarai" is Japan's leading BNPL service. It offers customers payment after delivery service with a simplified payment process, no credit card information is required. NP Atobarai processes transactions exceeding JPY 340 billion with over 15.8 million unique users yearly, making it the most experienced and trusted in Japan’s BNPL industry. 1 out of 7 Japanese has used NP Atobarai as payment method. Customers find NP Atobarai easy and safe to use, especially with their first-time visited online retailers. Merchants that use NP Atobarai have achieved 20% increase in sales without its customers’ unpaid risk.
For further information regarding NP Atobarai：https://www.netprotections.com/(Japanese Only)
NP Kakebarai
“NP Kakebarai” is BtoB BNPL service that guarantees any risk for unpaid payments and reduces unnecessary operational processes in BtoB transactions for enterprises. It helps merchants manage invoice issuing, payment collection, management, and credit screening for buyers.
With NP Kakebarai, merchants can expect stabilization of business management by reducing the burden of large amount of small payment collections and start business with small business owners without risk by eliminating credit screening procedures. NP Kakebarai’s sophisticated credit screening system, which is running by its own independent big data accumulated more than 20 years, provides instant credit while maintaining sufficient credit approval rates. As of 2021, NP Kakebarai processes transactions of JPY 75 billion annually, used by more than 410,000 merchants, as 1 out of 8 companies in Japan has used NP Kakebarai as their payment method. Through NP Kakebarai, NP is dedicated to providing a service to build a sustainable world in which all stakeholders are empowered to thrive and grow their business smoothly.
For further information regarding NP Kakebarai：https://np-kakebarai.com/(Japanese Only)
NP Atobarai air
"NP Atobarai air" is BtoC BNPL service for a wide variety of operational needs for day-to-day services. It can be used in various fields such as home appliance repair, maintenance, home/office cleaning, and rental services. With its simplified process, NP Atobarai air allows merchants to handle complicated procedures such as invoice issuing, collecting, payment confirmation, and customers` unpaid risk prevention. Also, it offers customers various payment options such as wire-transfer, convenience store payment, Post Office payment, and LINE Pay.
For further information regarding NP Atobarai air：https://www.netprotections.com/air/(Japanese Only)
atone
BtoC BNPL service with membership benefits “atone” enables customers to fulfill their needs to shop without credit cards.Register online in easy steps, anyone can purchase immediately and pay in the following month. Reward points earned from use worth 0.5% after a purchase is made can be used for discounts.atone provides with best processing fee in Japan industry of 1.9% + JPY 30 for both E-commerce vendors and offline retailers. Satisfying the demand for post-payment not only leads to the increase of online sales by 20% but also provides customers an option to meet the needs of cash payment when shopping in offline stores with a whole new cashless payment experience.
For further information regarding atone：https://atone.be/shop/(Japanese Only)
Overview of JCB Co., Ltd.
JCB is a major global payment brand and a leading credit card issuer and acquirer in Japan. JCB launched its card business in Japan in 1961 and began expanding worldwide in 1981. Its acceptance network includes about 35 million merchants in the world. JCB Cards are now issued in over 20 countries and territories with more than 140 million cardmembers. As part of its international growth strategy, JCB has formed alliances with hundreds of leading banks and financial institutions globally to increase merchant coverage and cardmember base. As a comprehensive payment solution provider, JCB commits to providing responsive and high-quality service and products to all customers worldwide.
For more information, please visit https://www.global.jcb/ja/
Overview of Net Protections, Inc.
Net Protections, Inc. is a pioneer of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services in Japan. In 2002, Net Protections launched its first service, NP Atobarai, a BNPL that guarantees risk-free transactions for businesses and provides a deferred payment for customers in Japan for the first time. NP Atobarai is used by numerous enterprises with over 15 million users (※3) and has surpassed 340 million transactions as of March, 2022. In 2011, Net Protections released NP Kakebarai, a BNPL service for BtoB. NP Kakebarai has grown 130% yearly and played a role as the dominant BtoB payment service in Japan. In 2017, Net Protections launched atone, BtoC BNPL service that can be used at not only e-commerce, but also digital content and physical retailers. In 2018, Net Protections released AFTEE, BtoC BNPL service in Taiwan. Net Protections has accumulated transaction data and knowledge since its first service launched, which has enabled it to build a sophisticated credit screening system and solid operation skills. Net Protections always pursues creating a society where everyone can do business safely and easily.
【Company Name】
Net Protections, Inc.
(Net Protections Holdings, Inc.[Code: 7383, Prime Market of Tokyo Stock Exchange] Group)
【Representative】
Shin Shibata, CEO
【Website】
https://corp.netprotections.com/en/
【Services】
BtoC e-commerce Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) service, NP Atobarai
BtoB BNPL Service, NP Kakebarai
BtoC BNPL service for on-site services, NP Atobarai air
BtoC cardless BNPL service, atone
BtoC BNPL Service in Taiwan, AFTEE
Point reward program, NP Point Club
【Founded】
January, 2000
【Capital】
JPY 100 million
【Head Office】
SUMITOMO FUDOSAN KOJIMACHI FIRST BUILDING 5F, 4-2-6 Kojimachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0083 Japan
※3）The number of individual unique users of NP Atobarai based on the matching of duplicative names and phone numbers between April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022
Direct any inquiries regarding this release to:
Direct any inquiries regarding this release to:
JCB
EMAIL：jcb-pr@jcb.co.jp
Net Protections, Inc.
EMAIL：pr@netprotections.co.jp
