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

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

Consumers are slowly making changes to how they pay at checkout. We look at the top seven payment methods and delve into what’s pushing forward and detracting from their growth.

Its impressive growth gives Shopify a volume and cross-sell boost

A rewards integration coming later this year could make Synchrony a more attractive co-brand partner

But the solution may struggle to gain traction given consumers’ unreadiness to adopt the technology

Reeling from 2024’s challenges, financial institutions must embrace bold strategies in 2025 to future-proof their businesses in a landscape plagued by economic, competitive, and regulatory pressures.

Sezzle faces an uphill battle competing against larger players like Affirm and Klarna

It opened up its ecosystem and seemingly gave up its grand financial services ambitions. But it’s still a major payments player.

This tie-up defies previous concerns about the viability of funding the BNPL industry

Gen Z is the first mobile payments-native generation. By 2028, 67.8% of US adults will be mobile wallet users, per our forecast. Gen Zers are already way ahead: 85.1% made an in-store or online payment using their phone in 2023, according to Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

While it still faces hurdles, the company’s finances have improved markedly—setting it up for a strong IPO in 2025

Big Tech will likely challenge the rule in court. Trump’s second term could also make the rule short-lived

They can help Google steal some market share from Apple as it opens up its NFC tech.

US retail sales via mobile wallets are growing much faster than overall sales. To meet this demand, wallet providers must address consumer expectations and solve growth hurdles.

Marqeta Flex helps digital wallets and card issuers embed BNPL options, eliminating the need for direct integrations with merchants

It’s a large volume opportunity for the BNPL player and helps Klarna compete with. It can also help keep users loyal to Apple as its NFC tech opens up

US buy now, pay later (BNPL) payment value will reach $94.29 billion in 2024. As the industry matures, user growth is becoming limited—forcing BNPL fintechs to find new avenues for growth.

This feature will help Venmo catch up to other P2P apps and bring in more frequent users.

This could not only impact its market share in the debit card industry and cut into its margins—it may also hurt Visa’s brand in the court of public opinion