On the second anniversary of its internet finance product Baitiao.com, JD Finance, a financial affiliate of China’s second largest e-commerce platform JD.com, made a strategic investment in Meili Financial, a online financial platform focusing on second-hand car loans, Sina Finance reported on Tuesday.
According to the official website of JD Finance, users can purchase a car on Baitiao.com and pay by installments.
Baitiao, which means IOU in English, is a personal loans and installment service provided by JD Finance launched in 2014. Based on different credit ratings, Baitiao users can enjoy credit services with 30 days of deferred payment, or pay in monthly installments over a 3-24 month period, with a maximum line of credit of RMB 15,000 (USD 2315). Baitiao is now one of the core businesses of JD Finance. Its turnover exceeded RMB 100 million within 35 minutes on the Double 11 Shopping Day in 2015.
In addition to used car loans, Baitiao.com has also set foot in other areas:
Baitiao for college students – Baitiao for college students is a credit payment product created for college students. Students using the product can enjoy the privilege of shopping first and then repaying their loans later on JD.com. Baitiao offers them 30-day interest-free random installment plans and a credit line up to RMB 8,000.
Baitiao for travel – similar to Baitiao for college students, Baitiao for travel was launched for people who can’t afford to travel. Users can choose from a variety of travel itineraries on JD.com or its partner Shoufuyou with a down payment of only 10%, then choose their installment plan.
Baitiao for house rentals – In China, tenants usually need to pay rent on a quarterly basis, which can create great financial pressure. In this case, Baitiao for house rentals, a credit payment product, was launched last April, meaning users can now pay their rent in installments.
According to JD Finance, Baitiao will enter more consumer finance areas in the future and build an integrated ecosystem for credit payment.
Consumer finance is a growing industry in China. Data from the People’s Bank of China shows that consumer credit in China amounted to RMB 18.9 trillion (almost USD 3 trillion) in 2015, an increase of 23.3% year over year. Baitiao is facing fierce competition from similar services, including Alipay’s Ant Check Later, NetEase’s Bailingdai, and e-commerce giant Sunin’s Renxingfu.
(Top photo from www.redsh.com)