PayNearMe, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based vendor that services cash payments for auto loans, is expanding to include debit, credit and ACH payments, as well as mobile wallet integration and payment reminders, parent company Handle Financial announced earlier this month.
Historically, PayNearMe provided borrowers a barcode that could be used to make their loan payments at 27,000 ACE Cash Express, 7-Eleven, Casey’s General Stores, and Family Dollar locations across the country.
“Now, instead of just getting the barcode, you have the choice to say, ‘I want to pay with a credit card,’ or ‘I want to pay with ACH,’” Chief Executive Danny Shader told Auto Finance News. “It’s on your phone, without going to the store. We’ll save your payment credentials and make it easy to pay next time.”
Auto finance is the company’s largest vertical, and clients were asking for this kind of integration so they can consolidate multiple vendors into one service, Shader said.
For example, if a subprime consumer’s bank account is overdrawn, a deposit to his bank would likely fulfill the overdraft first, potentially causing him to fall short on his auto loan payment.
Diversified payments help reduce repossessions. “Consumers switch tender type,” Shader said. “They may pay with cash this month, a credit card next month, and a debit card the month after. As a lender, you want to make sure it’s easier and reliable to do all of that.”
Nonprime lenders National Auto Lenders and Zinc Auto Finance are two of PayNearMe’s auto clients. The PayNearMe interface is also available in Spanish.
