Installment payments online in Romania: how to enable TBI, PayU Rate or BNPL on your site

A customer adds an item to the cart, sees the full price, hesitates, and closes the tab. It happens most on bigger orders — a furniture set, a treatment, a year-long subscription. An installment option at checkout changes the math in the customer's head: instead of one large number, they see a small monthly payment. That raises your average order value without lowering the real price.

The catch is that "installments" means three completely different things in Romania, each with its own cost and integration. TBI Pay isn't the same as PayU Rate, and BNPL (Mokka, Oney) is something else again. In this article I explain the differences in plain terms, who actually pays the interest, what you need to enable each option technically, and what to watch for before you sign anything.

The three kinds of "installments" — and who pays the cost

Before any integration, you need to know what you're choosing, because these sound alike but work differently:

• Card installments — the customer's own bank (BT, BRD, Raiffeisen, etc.) splits the payment into installments on their card. You, the merchant, get paid in full, immediately. The customer pays interest to their bank; you carry no credit risk.

• Checkout financing (TBI Pay) — the customer signs a credit contract with a lender (TBI Bank). The lender pays you the amount, and the customer repays the credit in installments. You can offer "interest-free installments," in which case you cover the cost through a fee.

• BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) — "buy now, pay in 30 days" or in 3-4 chunks. The provider (Mokka, Oney) pays you, takes on the risk, and collects from the customer.

Basic rule: if you want "interest-free" installments for the customer, someone still pays — usually you, through a higher fee.

TBI Pay — financing for bigger orders

TBI Pay is the best-known checkout financing option in Romania and fits expensive products or services: furniture, appliances, courses, treatments, equipment.

How it works: the customer picks TBI at the end of the order, fills in an online request, gets a fast decision and, if approved, signs the credit digitally. You get paid by TBI Bank, not by the customer — and you're not responsible for repayment.

What you need to enable it:

• a merchant contract with TBI (they have an approval process and ask about your company and turnover)
• the technical integration on your site — they have modules for the popular platforms and an API for custom-built sites

Watch the fee and the plans you offer (3, 6, 12 installments). Ask clearly in the offer what each "interest-free" option costs you, so it doesn't eat your margin.

PayU Rate and card installments

If you already use PayU as your payment processor, "PayU Rate" is the simplest starting point, because you enable it in the same account, without adding a new provider.

In practice, PayU brokers card installments through partner banks: the customer pays by card, their bank splits the amount into installments, and you collect in full. It's ideal for mid-sized orders where you don't want a separate financing contract.

Keep in mind:

• It only works for customers whose card is with an eligible partner bank — so not everyone will see the option.
• "Interest-free" is negotiated: sometimes the bank absorbs the interest in a campaign, sometimes you do.
• You enable it from the merchant account, and how it shows at checkout depends on how the gateway is integrated on your site.

The big upside: you get the money on the spot and take on no default risk.

BNPL — "buy now, pay later"

BNPL (Mokka, Oney and others) is built for small and mid-sized orders and for customers who want flexibility without the paperwork of a classic loan.

The typical model: the customer gets the product now and pays in 30 days or in a few equal chunks. The provider pays you almost immediately and takes on the default risk. Your cost is a fee, usually higher than a normal card payment.

Where it helps most:

• it reduces hesitation on mid-sized carts, especially in fashion, cosmetics, gadgets
• it brings in customers who don't want to tie up the whole amount at once

It's not universally right: if you sell products with many returns, handling the refund through BNPL adds complexity. Test it on one category, not the whole store at once.

How to actually add them — the technical steps

Whatever the provider, the path is roughly the same:

1. Pick 1-2 options, not all of them. Too many buttons at checkout confuse the customer. Start from what you sell and what it costs.

2. Sign the merchant contract with the provider (TBI, PayU, Mokka). They'll ask for company details — so you need an active registered business.

3. Integrate technically. On WooCommerce/PrestaShop there are ready-made modules. On a custom site (Next.js, for example) you integrate via API or a redirect to the provider, plus a webhook that confirms payment and flips the order to "paid."

4. Test for real — a test order, a rejection, a return — before you go live.

5. Show the installment on the product page, not just at checkout. A "from X/month" next to the price makes most of the difference.

If your site is custom-built and you're not sure how to wire the API and webhooks correctly, we at MPO Web Studio handle the integration remotely, end to end. We can show you a pre-built demo first, so you see exactly how the checkout looks with installments before you decide. One WhatsApp message and we'll tell you honestly which option is worth it for what you sell.