Say goodbye to Apple Pay Later in the US
Apple's 'buy now, pay later' program in full back in October
🙅♂️ Apple Pay Later is being discontinued
😬 The ‘buy now, pay later’ program launched eight months ago
😅 Don’t worry – current installment plan users won’t be affected
It’s splitsville for Apple Pay Later, the company’s eight-month-old “buy now, pay later” program that, until today, let users split payments over time.
Apple Pay Later, which launched in full in October 2023, offered loans from $50 to $1,000 in four equal parts but never made it out of the US, according to 9to5Mac. Starting later this year, a global installment plan program is set to launch via credit and debit cards as well as lenders. Interestingly, this fresh Apple news was saved for today instead of coming out during WWDC 2024, when iOS 18, visionOS 2, and Apple Intelligence were revealed.
The good news is that if you’re in the middle of an installment plan using Apple Pay Later, you won’t be affected by the sudden change. Apple Pay Later will continue to work – you just won’t be able to start a new loan when making a future purchase – like when selecting one of the rumored iPhone 16 colors this September.
Apple Pay Later is the latest change
Apple’s “no fees and no interest” payment plans are the latest shake-up for the tech company’s involvement in the banking business. Its credit card relationship with Goldman Sachs is reportedly going to end (which has me wondering what will happen to its tempting 4.40% APY high-yield savings account). It may seek a new partner, but official details haven’t emerged yet.
Apple isn’t alone in the too-good-to-be-true payment and credit card game troubles this month. Bilt and Wells Fargo’s relationship may be headed for an impasse in 2029, according to the reporting of the Wall Street Journal. Banking giant Wells Fargo is said to be losing millions of dollars on the popular perks-driven Bilt credit card.