Affirm Is Partnering with Fiserv on Buy Now, Pay Later

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Affirm Holdings

said it would work with the fintech

Fiserv

to allow business owners to more simply offer “buy now, pay later” options.

Through the partnership, merchants will be able to add an Affirm option to their checkout process, the companies said in a statement. The option will be available later this year.

BNPL options, which allow customers to choose flexible financing when they shop online, have become increasingly popular among consumers, especially as prices for everyday goods soar. About 54% of consumers out of 1,028 respondents who have used BNPL options say it has been out of necessity, according to an online survey conducted by Credit Karma in March.

“Roughly half of U.S. consumers, and three-fourths of millennials, will not complete a purchase if a retailer does not offer pay-over-time at checkout, according to a recent Affirm survey,” said Geoff Kott, chief revenue officer at Affirm.

While BNPL may be a good option for consumers, offering it often creates technological complexities for business owners.

Affirm stock (ticker: AFRM) was down 3% Wednesday to $29.18. Despite the recent uptick in BNPL usage, shares have plunged 70% year to date.

Fiserv

stock (FISV) was relatively flat, up 0.5% to $100.12. It has fallen 4% so far this year, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index is down by about 20%.

One possible reason for the stock’s slide is that offering BNPL loans to customers requires deep pockets. Investors have previously expressed concern regarding Affirm’s ability to access funds in a volatile market.

Of the 13 analysts tracked by

FactSet

that cover Affirm on FactSet, six say the stock is a Buy, one rates it at Overweight, five say it is a Hold, and one calls it a Sell.

Write to Logan Moore at [email protected].