Parafin and Tekion Launch B2B Buy Now Pay Later for Automotive Retailers

Parafin and Tekion have launched "Pay Over Time," a B2B buy now, pay later solution integrated into the Automotive Retail Cloud. This partnership allows dealership business customers to split invoices into biweekly installments using cash-flow-based underwriting. For fintech professionals, it represents a significant expansion of embedded credit into specialized vertical SaaS, moving beyond generic retail into complex automotive supply chains.

What was announced

The new "Pay Over Time" solution is embedded directly into Tekion’s Automotive Retail Cloud (ARC) platform through Tekion Pay. It is designed specifically for business-to-business transactions within the automotive sector, allowing dealership customers to manage cash flow by splitting bills into biweekly installments. Users can select from three distinct payment plans: Pay-in-4, Pay-in-8, or Pay-in-12.

Unlike traditional financing that often relies on personal credit scores or slow-to-establish net terms, Parafin’s underwriting model uses real-time bank transaction data. By linking a business bank account, buyers can receive an immediate decision without a credit bureau pull or a personal guarantee. This approach targets businesses that traditional lenders might overlook due to conventional credit modeling constraints.

The service sits alongside existing payment options like ACH and card payments within Tekion Pay. For dealerships, the integration aims to accelerate cash flow by ensuring they receive payment upfront while offering their vendors and business clients the flexibility of deferred payments. The system is built to handle the specific workflows of the automotive retail ecosystem, from dealer operations to vendor payments, providing a modern checkout experience that mirrors consumer-facing BNPL services.

"The way businesses pay each other hasn't kept pace with the rest of commerce. Consumers have come to expect flexible payment options at checkout, but businesses are still navigating invoices, net terms, and manual financing. Together with Tekion, we're bringing that same modern experience to B2B."

Sahill Poddar, Co-Founder & CEO at Parafin.

The companies involved

Parafin is a financial infrastructure company that specializes in embedded financial products for small businesses. By abstracting the complexities of capital markets, underwriting, and compliance, Parafin enables merchant platforms to offer credit and other financial services directly to their users. The company has established a significant footprint in the market, having extended over $35 billion in offers through partnerships with major platforms including Amazon, Gusto, and DoorDash. Sahill Poddar serves as the Co-Founder & CEO of the firm.

Tekion provides an AI-native, end-to-end platform designed for the automotive retail industry. Its flagship product, the Automotive Retail Cloud (ARC), serves as a cloud-native operating system for retailers, while the Automotive Enterprise Cloud (AEC) and Automotive Partner Cloud (APC) connect manufacturers and technology partners. Tekion focuses on replacing legacy systems with intelligent automation and real-time insights across the entire automotive ecosystem. Jamie Fox is the General Manager of Tekion Pay at Tekion. The partnership with Parafin represents a deepening of Tekion's fintech capabilities within its existing dealer workflow software.

What FF News has reported before

FF News has closely followed Parafin’s growth as a leader in the embedded finance space. In late 2024, we reported that Parafin Raises $100M Series C to Redefine Small Business Financial Services, a funding round intended to scale its infrastructure for merchant platforms. More recently, the company demonstrated its vertical-specific utility when Parafin Powers SpotOn Capital to Slash Restaurant Financing Costs by 35%. This prior coverage highlights Parafin's strategy of entering high-volume industries like hospitality and retail to provide tailored capital solutions that bypass traditional banking hurdles.

What this means

This move signals a maturing of the B2B BNPL market, shifting from generalist providers to deeply integrated vertical solutions. By embedding credit into a specialized platform like Tekion’s ARC, Parafin is challenging traditional commercial lenders who rely on antiquated underwriting. The automotive sector, characterized by high-value invoices and complex supply chains, is ripe for this disruption. However, the reliance on cash-flow data over personal credit puts pressure on traditional banks to modernize their risk assessment or risk losing the dealership market entirely. The success of this rollout will likely determine if other heavy-industry SaaS providers follow suit in bypassing traditional net-term arrangements.