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China-based electronic payments firm 99Bill Corp. says it has introduced a service that enables its registered credit card users to pay for online purchases through interest-free installments. Customers buying goods from the company's partner merchants can choose to pay for those purchases over three, six or 12 months, a 99Bill spokesperson tells CardLine Global. 99Bill will charge merchants a fee to participate, but the company would not provide specific fee information. The firm offers the service to customers with cards issued by the Bank of China and China Industrial Bank, the spokesperson says. Later this month, 99Bill will offer the service to customers with cards from the Bank of Communications. Bank of China and Bank of Communications cardholders using the service must spend at least 1,000 yuan (US$146 or 99 euros), while Industrial Bank cardholders must spend at least 1,500 yuan, the spokesperson says. "The installment service will enhance the competitive power of 99Bill's partner merchants and attract more online merchants to work with it," Fei Cao, an analyst with Beijing-based Analysys International, tells CardLine Global. 99Bill says it has about 26 million registered users and more than 150,000 partner merchants.
