Buy Now Pay Later at first glance looks just like a credit card, but it seems to actually be credit companies competition. Companies like Afterpay (AFTPY  ), Klarna, Sezzle, and Splitit (STTTF  ) are coming on strong in the digital market, according to fintech research specialist Kaleido Intelligence. They have reported that $353 billion was spent globally using Buy Now Pay Later, or BNPL, but they project that $680 billion will be spent globally by 2025. If their prediction is correct, BNPL shopping could change online spending habits forever.

Those familiar with online shopping know that abandoned shopping carts is bad for retailers because it denotes a lack of trust for the brand or a rejection of the business. But using BNPL is helping combat those abandoned carts, promoting flow of money and helping business avoid those carts left behind. While each BNPL service has its own set of rules, they generally stick to allowing consumers pay for their items in installments, set up repayment plans, and pay lower interest than on a credit card. Meanwhile, others have perks like no interest if the amount is paid back within a certain time frame, see how much interest they'll be paying total, or charge late fees if deadlines are missed.

While this style of payment is growing in popularity, big credit card names like Visa (V  ) and Mastercard (MA  ) is still king. They still have higher interest rates, but they're also more widely accepted. Online stores are much more likely to take big name cards, and if they do offer BNPL, they only accept one or two services out of the many popping up. However, if a company wants to stay relevant they must change with the times, and so both Visa and Mastercard have also entered the BNPL market. Visa now offers Visa Installments, and Mastercard went ahead and acquired Vyze and partnered with Splitit.

BNPL is mostly popular in Europe, but is quickly gaining popularity in North America. The real test of this style of shopping will be the holiday season. With more people able to spread out the payments of their holiday shopping, we could see a significant uptick in both spending and BNPL popularity.