Worldpay can help Affirm revitalize user growth

The news: Buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider Affirm’s Adaptive Checkout will now be available to all Worldpay from FIS merchants, per a press release. Worldpay merchants will be able to offer consumers biweekly and monthly payment options.

Affirm’s financial state: Affirm has had trouble keeping up with the rapid growth from fiscal 2022.

• In fiscal Q3 2023 (ended March 31, 2023), Affirm’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) grew 18% year over year (YoY)—a major slowdown from the 73% YoY surge from the same period a year ago.
• Affirm’s active consumer base grew 26% YoY to hit 16.0 million users, another sharp pullback from 137% growth the prior year.
• And the company’s revenues increased 7% YoY to reach $381 million, versus 54% growth last year.

The bigger picture: Affirm, along with the rest of the BNPL industry, faces a multitude of challenges that has impeded growth— cooler discretionary spend, regulatory scrutiny, and competitive threats like Apple Pay Later.

To withstand these hurdles, many BNPL providers—including Affirm—are restructuring.

• Affirm laid off 19% of its staff in Q3 and shut down its cryptocurrency business.
• It also shuttered its business in Australia to focus on its home market and Canada.
• The total restructure—which could cost $39 million—aims to create a “nimbler team,” CEO Max Levchin said during the Q3 earnings call.

Why this tie-up matters: Affirm is targeting profitability by the end of fiscal 2023. Working with Worldpay can help it reach that goal.

• The tie-up brings Affirm to a massive new merchant network: Worldpay serves more than 1 million merchants globally.
• This will help extend Affirm’s reach and bring in new customers, which can boost volume growth: We predict Affirm’s US payment value will reach $20.54 billion in 2023, up 22.5% YoY, per our forecast.

Digging deeper: For a closer look at key trends we’re watching in the BNPL industry, read our “State of Payment Methods” report.

This article originally appeared in Insider Intelligence's Payments Innovation Briefing—a daily recap of top stories reshaping the payments industry. Subscribe to have more hard-hitting takeaways delivered to your inbox daily.

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