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Apple鈥檚 long-teased buy now, pay later service is finally here, but what can it bring to an already crowded table? Our analysts unpack who may use Apple Pay Later and evaluate five of its prerelease features to see how they stack up to consumer demand.

Apple鈥檚 product strength and established wallet reach will make the solution a prime competitor in a crowded market.

It added Apple Pay as a payment option for Advanced Checkout and introduced new features to streamline customer checkout.

On today's episode, we discuss why brands should be thinking more about community; Apple rolling out its buy now, pay later offering; consumers' shipping priorities; H&M's new resale program; what in-store retail robots can do; facts about US national parks; and more. Tune in to the discussion with our forecasting writer Ethan Cramer-Flood, vice president of content Suzy Davidkhanian, and analyst Blake Droesch.

Budgeting concerns, high interest rates, and other factors are pushing the generation to alternatives.

The campaign鈥檚 associated sweepstakes encourages users to pay more frequently with PayPal

The stablecoin giant is exploring plans to launch a US-specific token and POS solution

Most consumers aren鈥檛 using BNPL frequently enough to make it cost effective

Uptake could be limited given the crypto market plunge

Leading cash-back credit cards need to drive acquisition in a cutthroat segment of the card market. Our exclusive consumer survey data reveals which emerging features issuers should invest in to win over customers.

On today's episode, we discuss Apple鈥檚 dominance in the digital wallet arena. In our 鈥淗eadlines鈥� segment, we look at the ramifications of The Kroger Co.鈥檚 about-face on Apple Pay and how the EU is scrutinizing Apple Pay in its antitrust investigation. In 鈥淪tory by Numbers,鈥� we examine how Gen Z鈥檚 use of iPhones will keep Apple competitive in the digital wallet space and the success of Apple鈥檚 new savings account. And in our new segment, 鈥淲hat If,鈥� host Rob Rubin presents a few hypotheticals and discusses what things would look like if they were true. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst David Morris.

Social commerce is the fastest-growing US retail channel, and retailers will need to offer a seamless payment experience to maximize the opportunity. Understanding payment preferences will be key to ensuring conversion at checkout.

Despite an industrywide push to grow via nonmerchant partnerships, BNPL players still rely on individual deals to reach large merchants

On today鈥檚 episode, we discuss how Gen Zers are different from older generations in that a lot of their financial services product consumption will be embedded within non-financial service-specific experiences. In our "Headlines" segment, we examine how convenience plays a major factor into Gen Z decision-making. In "Story by Numbers," we discuss Gen Z鈥檚 use of Apple Pay in consumer finance and if consumers can find competitive prices while using embedded finance experiences. And in "For Argument's Sake," we debate if more than 10% of Gen Z or Gen Alpha will go their whole lives without establishing direct relationships with financial service providers. Listen in to the conversation with host Rob Rubin and our analysts Grace Broadbent and Eleni Digalaki.

Market instability as well as concerns over an economic slowdown as a result of President Trump鈥檚 tariffs are making the BNPL player pause its plans

The explosion of softPOS is reshaping the POS landscape and forcing hardware and software providers to pivot

The tie-up can help Affirm鈥檚 strategy of building out its debit card to grow its overall payments volume

The payments giant is expanding its financial media network to monetize its data and push profitability efforts forward

Sensei raises $16 million in seed round: The retail tech provider has its sights set on bringing automated, contactless stores to Europe.

Many may turn to BNPL to make these purchases, providing a growth opportunity for providers

The P2P player was able to make this pivot thanks to the success of its integration in banks鈥� apps, which currently lead to 98% of its transactions

They have higher customer satisfaction rates, adding to the competitive pressures

The company is likely looking for ways to reinvigorate growth after a weaker-than-expected Q4

After pulling news for a portion of EU users, Google saw barely any drop in engagement, which could fuel a shift toward AI summaries and fewer publisher links.