- The coronavirus has been a catalyst for big changes in the way consumers spend and pay.
- Ongoing trends like contactless payments and buy now, pay later are accelerating.
- New trends are emerging, like consumers’ preference toward buy online, pick up in-store.
- Here’s how banks, credit card companies, fintechs, and investors are thinking about the new norms in how we shop and pay.
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From banks to credit card companies to retailers, the coronavirus pandemic has impacted virtually every player in the payments industry.
Ongoing trends, like buy now, pay later and contactless payments, have been accelerated. And new norms in the way we shop, like buy online, pick up in-store, are emerging.
We’ve spoken with execs across the payments ecosystem to understand what’s changing, and how they’re looking to establish the ‘new normal’ as shops reopen and stay-at-home orders lift.
Here’s everything we know about the future of how we’ll shop and pay in a post-COVID world.
Reimagining retail for a post-COVID world
- E-commerce giant Shopify just launched a way for retailers to transform stores into fulfillment centers by quickly adding curbside pickups
- Retail will need to be reinvented after the pandemic. PayPal cofounder Max Levchin lays out the future of brick-and-mortar, and the ‘software fight’ that will go on behind the scenes
Buy now, pay later
- Buy now, pay later startups are surging. But Affirm CEO Max Levin says the industry will see a shakeout as the pandemic hits borrowers.
- Buy now, pay later startups are ‘having a moment’ — here’s why retailers like Walmart and Target are betting on installment payments to keep consumers spending
Banks, credit cards, and contactless payments
- A Mastercard exec lays out how a surge in contactless payments is giving the company an unexpected boost as people rethink touching cash
- Credit card rewards programs are getting upended as travel grinds to a halt. Here’s what Chase and American Express are doing to keep ‘top of wallet’ status.
- Digital-only banks like Chime are seeing record signups amid the coronavirus pandemic. Here’s how they drive revenue without lending or charging overdraft fees.