Apple Pay

The big box retailer's move comes amid a broader decline for the traditional payment option.

The rocky journey and abrupt end of the technology company's fledgling buy now/pay later service underscores ongoing challenges facing fintechs that offer point-of-sale installment loans, and how banks may benefit from the changing BNPL ecosystem.

Amazon Pay — which provides one-click checkout on thousands of e-commerce sites — has added support for Citi Flex Pay, Citigroup's point-of-sale credit card loans, as competition for buy now/pay later customers expands to digital wallets.

The tech giant's planned savings account would receive deposits from the Apple Card's Daily Cash rewards, encouraging users to spend more on Apple's credit card as a way to build their balances.

In a twist on its Goldman Sachs-issued credit card, the technology giant will directly underwrite and hold its buy now/pay later loans through its own subsidiary, cutting out intermediaries.

"Apple may have restricted competition, to the benefit of its own solution Apple Pay," Margrethe Vestagar of the European Commission said. It's an accusation Apple's fought many times across the globe.

Apple Inc. is working on a new service that will let consumers pay for any Apple Pay purchase in installments over time, rivaling the buy now/pay later offerings popularized by services from Affirm Holdings Inc. and PayPal Holdings Inc.

Apple will allow some iPhone users to scan their driver's license and protect it with the same security used for payment cards in Apple Pay.

Transit and parking draw new users to mobile wallets, and Google is expanding both features to add use cases for its payment app.

Apple Inc. phones face scrutiny from Dutch antitrust regulators who are probing whether users get a free choice of financial apps with contactless payments.