Shoprite Group has signed a partnership with Weaver Fintech (formerly Homechoice International) subsidiary PayJustNow to bring buy now, pay later (BNPL) payment options to customers for a wide range of items, including groceries.
According to the retail giant, BNPL is available for selected brands, including Shoprite, Checkers, Checkers Hyper, Usave, Checkers Outdoor, Uniq clothing by Checkers, Little Me and Petshop Science, as well as online through Sixty60 and Computicket.
“We are focused on giving customers practical and innovative tools to manage larger expenses in a way that fits their lives, rather than forcing difficult trade-offs at the till,” said Jean Olivier, GM of financial services at Shoprite Group, in response to a query from TechCentral.
“It allows customers to plan and spread the cost of essential and larger-ticket purchases, including groceries and everyday necessities, in a predictable way.”
BNPL payment options – a digital version of the lay-by concept – are increasing in popularity among South African consumers. By allowing customers to receive items on purchase while only paying a portion of the full price, with the balance split into interest-free instalments, BNPL helps customers afford big-ticket items more easily while boosting merchant sales at the same time.
BNPL service providers use proprietary vetting algorithms to determine how much to loan to specific clients and for how long. Clients then build a credit history with the lender as they pay off prior loans and take on new ones. Positive payment behaviour is rewarded with access to larger loan amounts.
Payment options
“Fewer than one in five South Africans has a credit card, and so for many alternative payment tools are the critical difference between feeling financially empowered to tackle life’s realities, like replacing a broken appliance, purchasing school stationery, or buying a laptop for education or work, or falling behind on what matters most,” said Oliver.
But BNPL payment options have come under fire in recent months. Organisations like Microfinance South Africa have urged for stronger regulatory oversight over BNPL operations to ensure consumers are adequately protected from predatory lending practices or unintended debt traps.
Read: BNPL is taking off in South Africa
Speaking to TechCentral in an interview on Wednesday, Dean Hyde, chief operating officer of PayJustNow, said the company’s “low and grow” strategy of starting off by giving consumers a small amount of credit and then entrusting them with more depending on their payment behaviour has kept the company’s default rates at below 2%.
According to Hyde, PayJustNow and the BNPL industry at large are open to operating under a more clearly defined regulatory framework, as long as it is tailored to the industry and developed through consultation with industry stakeholders including BNPL service providers, fintechs and the banks.
“I don’t think we should remain unregulated. I think it’s unhealthy for any economy that has credit-type products to be unregulated. At the same time, it makes no sense for us to be regulated in the same way that micro-financers and other types of lenders are because we have a different product and we want to give access to the economy to those who didn’t have access before,” said Hyde.
He said the BNPL sector is engaging with financial regulators through the Fintech Association of South Africa, where industry working groups are developing a regulatory framework for the market.
Veteran consumer journalist Wendy Knowler, who investigated two consumer complaints regarding BNPL towards the end of 2025, said that while she was initially alarmed by the complaints, a subsequent investigation convinced her that BNPL has a place — provided if it is managed properly.
“If you read a lot of overseas reports, you will see that the default rate is particularly high, around 40%, suggesting BNPL is a debt trap. But in this country, the default rate is very low. If consumers choose to do it, then they must do so carefully,” said Knowler.
Read: Sixty60 smashes 100 million orders
“But I still think there is a place for good old lay-by, especially if consumers don’t need the products immediately because then there is less risk should the consumer run into trouble or change their mind.” – © 2026 NewsCentral Media
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