蘑菇AV

Zip will capture less than one-fifth as much payment value of the US leader, Affirm, at just $6.62 billion. Zip can be the beneficiary of catching that BNPL wave surge over time if it executes its US strategy effectively. Leaning into US-based merchant partnerships and expanding the Zip Card stateside could give Zip the boost to take off.

The BNPL player鈥檚 revenues doubled in Q4 thanks to users鈥� more frequent purchases

Ramping up marketing spend and integrating Cash App, Afterpay, and Square should put it in a stronger position in 2025

Digital wallets鈥� transformation into commerce enablers speeds up. We make a case for digital-only consumer credit cards. And we see a new threat that BNPL poses to credit cards.

It scored its first US rollout with the Affirm Card in November. VFC and Mastercard One Credential also share a partner: Marqeta became the first issuer processor to offer VFC thanks to a July tie-up. Our take: While Mastercard is almost a year behind Visa in launching this type of solution, it can easily catch up. The Affirm Card is VFC鈥檚 only major US consumer card program.

A lot happens in a week, so every Friday we're going to analyze all the new data and provide you with some of the key takeaways. Welcome to the Friday 5. This week, Temu and Shein get a scare, consumers use buy now, pay later (BNPL) apps to discover new products, and Super Bowl viewers don鈥檛 really care about ads for AI products or services.

In the past year, Apple Pay partnered with Affirm and Klarna. Google Wallet also recently added Afterpay and Klarna, building on its tie-ups with Affirm and Zip. Delinquencies will remain low. Structural repayment differences will keep BNPL default rates lower than those of credit cards. Most BNPL providers require automatic repayments, helping keep rates low.

Companies like Affirm, which offers the Affirm Card, will need to lean into optimizing their customer experience to create brand loyalty and long-term customer value.

They鈥檙e still using the payment method, but some are wary the plans lead to overspending

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider Affirm is among the first payment providers to use the new technology. Its Affirm Card uses Visa credentialing to function at the POS either as a debit card鈥攅nabling cardholders to 鈥減ay now鈥� for the purchase鈥攐r to pay in installments over time.

Affirm鈥檚 AdaptAI lets merchants offer perks that are funnelled to the consumer through the Affirm Card and app. Value add? Shop with AI Mode can help boost Google Pay鈥檚 payment volume by making the shopping experience as seamless and convenient for the shopper as possible. Keeping customers within its own payment ecosystem helps Google maximize its profit per purchase.

Fintechs like Klarna, Affirm, and Afterpay could launch similar strategies. Our take: Apple Pay benefits from strong brand loyalty and frictionless integration with iPhone鈥檚 interface. As Apple鈥檚 walled garden crumbles and competitors seize on that seamless integration, the contactless payment playing field could begin to level.

The directive from acting Director Scott Bessent throws recent payments rules like the open banking and BNPL rules into flux

he policy targets deceptive practices, requiring companies to make it as easy to cancel as it is to sign up. Opponents say it鈥檒l increase accidental unsubscribes.

Last week alone, Visa, Mastercard, Affirm, and PayPal all launched agentic AI solutions.

The company has been beefing up its BNPL capabilities ever since its exclusivity period with Affirm ended earlier this year

Amazon鈥檚 BNPL partners鈥�Affirm and Citi鈥攍ikely benefited from growing consumer demand for the tool