The sales and payments platform ThriveCart has launched ThrivePay Installments, a payment method that allows digital creators and entrepreneurs to offer long-term financing by leveraging a customer’s existing credit card limits. Unlike traditional buy now, pay later (BNPL) models that require new credit lines and localized underwriting, the system uses authorization holds on existing cards to split payments over three, six, or 12 months.
The shift addresses a specific friction point in the creator economy, where high-ticket items like coaching programs or masterminds can cost between $5,000 and $50,000. Traditional BNPL providers often cap approvals at $2,000 because they carry the consumer credit risk themselves. By using the $3.3trillion in unused credit card capacity in the US alone, ThrivePay Installments removes the need for new debt while providing merchants with upfront liquidity.
Ismael Wrixen, CEO of ThriveCart, explained that the digital economy has moved upmarket and requires more robust financing tools. “Wrixen said: “BNPL works well for smaller local purchases, but ThrivePay Installments extends installment payments globally and to higher-ticket products, with approval rates doubling to approximately 85 per cent”.
The model significantly alters the risk profile for merchants. In a standard BNPL transaction, the provider acts as a lender and assumes default risk, which often leads to lower approval rates for expensive items. With this card-linked approach, an authorization hold is placed for the full purchase amount on day one. If a customer fails to make a subsequent payment, the creator is not responsible, as they have already been funded upfront.
Georgios Kartakis, head of payments at ThriveCart, noted that the platform avoids originating new consumer debt. “Kartakis added: “This means we can unlock pre-existing credit available to a customer in the US, to a merchant based almost anywhere globally, all without creating new loan obligations”.
Fee Analysis: High-Ticket Efficiency vs. Standard Processing
The launch introduces a “funded settlement” model that shifts the economic burden from consumer interest to merchant service fees. For digital creators, the 15 per cent fee per transaction represents a significant departure from the lower percentages seen in standard retail processing.
However, the value proposition lies in the contrast between traditional BNPL and standard merchant discount rates. Traditional BNPL solutions charge up to 8 per cent for a 60-day funding window, with credit limits typically topping out at $2,000. In contrast, ThrivePay Installments funds the creator up to $65,000, providing immediate cash flow on high-ticket sales that would otherwise face rejection or significant approval friction.
|
Payment Method |
Typical Merchant Fee | Average Approval Rate | Maximum Ticket Value |
| Traditional BNPL | Up to 8% | 42% |
~$2,000 |
| ThrivePay Installments | 15% | 85% |
$65,000 |
Kartakis explained that the fee structure supports a 32.5x increase in funding per transaction and a repayment window up to six times longer than standard BNPL. From a unit economics perspective, the 3.1x increase in average order value (AOV) suggests that the higher fee is an investment in liquidity and conversion rather than a simple processing cost.
For creators selling premium masterminds or high-value courses, receiving the majority of funds upfront is often more sustainable for growth than a standard card transaction that might be abandoned due to “mental accounting friction” or the 30-day repayment pressure of a typical credit card cycle. Geography-based restrictions also dissipate; because it operates on global credit card infrastructure rather than acting as a lender, the platform supports transactions across more than 30 countries without navigating dozens of different consumer credit regulatory frameworks.
