As the cost of living goes up, legacy players can’t rely on brand loyalty alone—competitive perks win.

As consumer spending flattens, issuers and networks are competing for SMB and corporate spending for growth.

Affirm’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) increased 42% YoY to $10.8 billion during its fiscal Q1 2026 (ended September 30, 2025). Healthy performance across its POS integrations and its debit card is key to why we forecast Affirm will remain the dominant US BNPL player against its chief competitor, Klarna, by a margin of $4.7 billion in US volume. While Affirm notched its second quarter of profitability at $81 million in net income, it’s going to need to widen its margins to compete with the rewards PayPal can offer consumers, such as 5% cash back on Pay Monthly loans.

Bank of America’s revenues rose 11% YoY to $28.1 billion in its Q2 2025 earnings, outstripping analysts’ expectations at $27.5 billion, per CNBC. While consumers are demonstrating resilience, leaning into flexibility as the holiday season approaches could give issuers more loyalty from consumers who are skittish about holiday shopping. 0% interest holidays and card-linked buy now, pay later offers can help banks compete against fintechs offering similar promotions.

Affirm announced 0% Days, a three-day promotion running from October 22-24 for eligible Affirm consumers, guaranteeing 0% interest and no late fees for shopping completed through the Affirm app or Affirm Card. Affirm’s inability to compete with rewards from either PayPal or card-linked installment plans may stymie its promotion’s success. If it can expand its merchant partnerships to offer better cash back at more in-demand retailers, Affirm may be able to win over consumers who may have otherwise chosen another provider for their seasonal shopping.

The news: PayPal users can get 20% cash back on their Taco Bell orders if they check out with PayPal or Venmo in-app or online, per a press release. Our take: For Taco Bell enthusiasts, 20% cash back every week may be too good of an offer to refuse.

The news: Chases unveiled “The Shops at Chase,” an integrated shopping and promotion platform for Chase Freedom, Sapphire, and Ink cardholders. Our take: Being able to convert Chase rewards into material purchases is a draw. However, retraining Chase cardholders to make purchases at The Shops instead of starting their product search with Google or Amazon will be an uphill battle.

As competition for low-risk prospects heats up, cash-back credit card issuers must understand what features sway key demographics to sign up for a card. No annual fee, introductory rates, and rewards are central.

The neobank has big credit card aspirations as it looks to become a one-stop shop for financial services, but its new programs may struggle to secure uptake.

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.

American Express is expanding Amex Offers, which allows advertisers to serve card holders tailored deals. The expansion comes on the heels of Chase and PayPal launching financial media networks (FMNs), a trend we expect will continue.

Payment providers are tapping genAI to personalize marketing offers and virtual assistants while streamlining customer checkout. These tools could help providers monetize transaction data and help merchants drive sales.

To overcome account opening headwinds, credit card marketers can explore credit card subscriptions, net worth data collection, and wallet-first cardholder experiences.

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

This highlights the popularity of the credit card’s investment feature and should continue to bring in more cardholders

Invigorated travel has reestablished demand for travel credit card perks and benefits. But a recession could reverse gains—requiring premium card issuers to balance travel offerings with everyday utility. This second annual study reveals which of 10 leading premium travel credit cards are best positioned to attract and engage customers, based on their support of 49 emerging features.

The etailer is offering signup bonuses on its cards and other incentives to ensure payments volume stays within the company.

Our inaugural study evaluates 49 BNPL features based on customer demand, according to results of a survey of US BNPL users.