- Openpay (OPY) has teamed up with digital health company 1st Group (1ST) under a new revenue-sharing agreement
- The three-year agreement allows patients from 1st Group’s health services platform, MyHealth1st, to access Openpay’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) option
- Openpay has joined other major BNPL players and has achieved record growth across its business
- At the end of the fourth quarter, more than 824,000 active plans were recorded, which is up 229 per cent compared to the previous corresponding period
- It also saw an increase in the active merchant statistics, which grew 52 per cent
- However, it was Openpay’s U.K. business that was the star of the month, signing 109,000 active customers, up 95 per cent from the end of March 2020
- It also reported 187,000 active plans, which is up 103 per cent on March
- On the market this afternoon, Openpay is down 10.5 per cent and is trading for $3.94 per share, while 1st Group is up 58.1 per cent and is trading for 4.9 cents each
Openpay (OPY) has teamed up with digital health company 1st Group (1ST) under a new revenue-sharing agreement.
The three-year agreement allows patients from 1st Group’s health services platform, MyHealth1st, to access Openpay’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) option.
Under the agreement, Openpay will also market the MyHealth1st platform to existing healthcare practices within its Merchant network. The companies will then share the revenues generated from new customers.
BNPL solutions are now being offered by pharmacy, optometry, dental and veterinary businesses — all markets where 1st Group is a leader.
Quarterly update
Openpay has joined other major BNPL players and has achieved record growth across its business.
At the end of the fourth quarter, more than 824,000 active plans were recorded, which is up 229 per cent over the previous corresponding period. Customer numbers also grew to 319,000, which is up 141 per cent.
The company saw an increase with active merchants growing 52 per cent over the previous corresponding period.
“This period of historic growth for Openpay was set against a backdrop of COVID-19-related global market volatility,” CEO Michael Eidel said.
“We acted quickly to ensure the continued safety of our people, merchants and customers, while providing the flexibility our customers needed to responsibly utilise our plans,” he added.
What did the quarter look like for Openpay?
Last month, the company secured a U.K. funding facility for £25 million (around A$46 million) from Global Growth Capital (GGC). This gave Openpay access to £10 million (roughly A18.4 million) to support its fast-growing U.K. business.
In early March, the company announced it would become an exclusive BNPL supplier to Pentana Solutions for three years. Pentana services more than 60 per cent of the Australian car dealer market.
U.K. business
Openpay’s U.K. business surged this quarter, with 109,000 active customers, which is up 95 per cent from the end of March 2020. It reported 187,000 active plans, which is up 103 per cent from March.
The company signed a deal with major U.K. retailer JD Sports, which went live in May.
“As more consumers sought better ways to structure purchases across their life needs, we saw a strong surge in new customers and plans,” Michael said.
“This was particularly evident in the UK, where our business more than doubled during the period as a result of our OpenMay promotions and the launch of major retailer, JD Sports,” he added.
On the market this afternoon, Openpay is down 10.5 per cent and is trading for $3.94 per share, while 1st Group is up 58.1 per cent and is trading for 4.9 cents each at 2:00 pm AEST.