Two vendors offering merchandise for sale via a TikTok livestream.
Ismoyo Bay | AFP | Getty Images
TikTok has partnered with “Buy now, pay later” service Atom to offer installment payments in its Malaysian e-commerce marketplace, the latest in the company’s e-commerce push into Southeast Asia.
TikTok Shop will include Atom as a payment option, which would allow customers to spread deferred payments over three or six months.
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Atom is the BNPL arm of Singapore-based fintech firm Advance Intelligence Group, which is backed by major investors like SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Warburg Pincus.
The partnership is expected to “drive growth” and “enable merchants and small businesses to offer their customers a convenient and flexible payment option,” Jonathan Low, head of e-commerce strategy and special projects at TikTok Shop, said Friday.
“By integrating Atome as a payment option on TikTok Shop, we are excited to help drive e-commerce growth and support brands of all sizes,” said William Yang, Chief Commercial Officer at Atome.
The partnership comes as TikTok looks to markets outside of the United States to expand. While the United States is the company’s biggest market, TikTok faces headwinds there after Montana became the first state to ban the app. The app has also been banned in India.
In recent months, TikTok Shop has been aggressively develop in e-commerce in Southeast Asiain competition with existing players such as of the sea Shopee and from Alibaba the cage
TikTok’s CEO previously said the company will pay “billions of dollars” in Southeast Asia over the next few years. In April, TikTok said it had more than 325 million monthly users in Southeast Asia.
In June, the company announced that it would invest $12.2 million to help over 120,000 small and medium-sized businesses sell online. The investment consists of cash grants, digital skills training and advertising credits for these companies.
