Nervous about handing out your credit card number when shopping online? Pressed for cash? Gary Marino has a solution for you.

Marino is CEO of Bill Me Later, a company targeting high-income consumers who have good credit. With a fast credit check and a 1.5-percent transaction fee, consumers can be on their way to buy now, pay later. The company partners with tons of online retailers and is making movements toward traditional bricks and mortar stores as well. Overstock.com and LinensNThings.com are a couple of the many web sites that have been partnering with Bill Me Later, and Amazon.com just jumped on board as well.

Even if a consumer uses the Bill Me Later payment option at several different sites, all those charges will be combined into one monthly bill. Just like credit cards, it can be paid up front or stretched out over several months with interest charges added. And it certainly reduces the risk of ID theft that comes with online shopping.

But the new company raises many questions. What is Bill Me Later’s definition of “credit-worthy”? How long will this company last if people fail to pay off their debt? Marino has earned his stripes in the credit industry with experience at Citibank and FirstUSA. He has arranged a credit line of up to $1 billion with Citibank to cover the Bill Me Later lending costs. The company’s marketing costs are extremely low at less than $6 per customer. It currently has about 3 million customers, the vast majority of whom choose to repay the company through paperless (online) billing.

The New York Times, having covered many such up-and-coming sensations over the years, is expressing a bit of skepticism, comparing the company to the now-defunct NextCard (which also received an Amazon endorsement). Will Bill Me Later outlast all the shooting stars that fizzled out in the past? Above all else, will it provide competition and change in the credit industry?