Yes I think this partnership is mutually beneficial. Westpac (and ANZ, NAB for that matter) are struggling to take market share away from CBA in the younger demographic. Afterpay is a way for Westpac to gain access to that demographic through offering Afterpay-labelled mortgage loans in the future. This is a much better way to try and gain market share than trying to do so through the existing Westpac brand which isn't cool or sexy.
Sezzle is already doing something similar in the US/Canada by offering white label personal loans. This will naturally be the next step for Afterpay in my opinion. They'll likely get some kind of (rolling?) commission for each loan they write, similar to what banks pay mortgage brokers and mortgage managers.
The Afterpay money deposits will obviously be sitting with Westpac (since APT doesn't have a banking license) and this will likely fund Afterpay's growth in the usual pay-in-4 model and potentially other loans such as mortgages.
APT Price at posting:
$106.65 Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
