Buy now pay later

Affirm CEO Max Levchin said that the company did not have any plans for AI-spurred layoffs despite the fact that it was using the technology more for software engineering.

Research from American Banker shows that at least a quarter of all respondents see BNPL as a credible threat to credit card revenue.

Banks are mixed in their adoption of buy now/pay later and installment lending, according to American Banker research. Those that offer or are planning to offer it say that the primary motivating factor is to stay competitive.

American Banker research finds that while more than 30% agree buy now/pay later is good for banks and consumers, the majority of respondents are unconvinced.

Hokodo, a British business-to-business buy now/pay later fintech, has shut down after eight years. Its closure offers important lessons about the future of the concept.

American Banker's BNPL Tradeoff Survey finds risk and regulatory fears are leading many banks and credit unions to hold off on offering the lending product.

Banks that don't offer buy now/pay later risk pushing customers — especially younger ones — into fintechs' arms.

Stripe has expanded its Shared Payment Tokens, a foundational building block to protect agentic commerce, to work with Visa and Mastercard's tokens. It's also added Affirm and Klarna.

By acquiring the ATM firm, Brink's hopes to expand in retail commerce. Plus, Revolut issues a card to compete with Amex; Standard Chartered has a new payments chief; and more in American Banker's global payments and fintech roundup.

Critics say more regs for BNPL are overkill, but proponents hope the state rule will be a framework for other states.

Shares of the neobank plummeted nearly 30% Thursday despite posting revenue over $1 billion as investors balked at up-front loan provision expenses that come with the expansion of Klarna's longer-term installment loans.

Block's merchant unit is deploying a virtual assistant to sweeten its offer to merchants, while Amazon pushes Pay by Bank. Plus, Zelle reaches a milestone and more in American Banker's global payments and fintech roundup.

CEO Max Levchin said the lender is testing technology that allows merchants to perform more advanced testing of promotional financing offers.

The search giant has added Klarna to its growing list of companies that are supporting standards for agentic commerce. Also, Payoneer has added Indonesia and Mexico to its collections network and more in American Banker's global payments and fintech roundup.

The buy now, pay later lender is carving out a lane for itself with exclusive deals with Intuit's Quickbooks Payments and Expedia's websites. It also will be the default BNPL provider for Bolt's one-click checkout.

Pre- and post-purchase, buy now/pay later loans from Affirm will be available on Fiserv-issued debit cards. Last year, Affirm and FIS inked a deal to bring Affirm's BNPL loans to FIS-issued debit cards.

The buy now/pay later lender is seeking to create Affirm Bank, a Nevada-chartered industrial loan company.

The bank technology seller's deal with Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company is an opportunity to cash in on a government initiative to reduce cash — and comes on the heels of an earnings miss. Plus, Klarna plans to offer more credit options through a partnership with Walmart-backed OnePay, Revolut embraces agentic AI protocols and more in American Banker's global payments and fintech roundup.

The Swedish financial institution adds P2P payments as it tries to bolster its neobank aspirations. Payment firms don't like the U.K.'s potential restrictions on stablecoins and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.

The U.K. bank has completed a payment using the stablecoin alternative; while Revolut is trying to acquire Turkish neobank FUBS. Plus: execs tied to the Wirecard scandal are on their way to prison and more in the American Banker global payments and fintech roundup.