Sezzle, a Minneapolis-based buy now, pay later platform, scored a partial win in its antitrust lawsuit against Shopify after a US District Court judge in Minnesota allowed its main monopolization and restraint of trade claims to move forward, dismissing only a narrower tying claim without prejudice. Sezzle filed the suit in June 2025, alleging that Shopify rigged checkout to push shoppers toward its own Shop Pay Installments product launched in 2021, hit merchants with 1% to 2% penalty fees on every transaction processed through Sezzle or other third-party BNPL providers starting in 2022, and cut Sezzle’s business with Shopify merchants in half by 2023. The suit also claims two Shopify executives visited Sezzle in 2018 under the guise of “corporate development” and falsely suggested an acquisition or joint venture was on the table. Sezzle is seeking an injunction plus damages that could be tripled under antitrust rules.
