Apple Pay Later might be finally close to a launch date.
In the latest version of Mark Gurman's Power On newsletter, the reporter detailed what we might be able to expect from Apple's upcoming financial services products. Apple Pay Later and Apple Savings have already been announced and hardware subscriptions are rumored, but nothing has actually been launched yet.
So, where is everything?
According to Gurman, Apple Pay Later could launch as soon as March or April. The company recently started beta testing the new payments program with employees at its retail stores. The reporter notes that the company did something similar when it launched Apple Card a few years ago, so this testing could indicate the company is nearing a lunch of the buy now, pay later service.
Apple Pay Later is a "Buy Now, Pay Later" financing service that will be offered directly from Apple to customers using the company's Apple Pay digital payments service. While Apple Pay is the technology that allows you to make a purchase online safely and securely, Apple Pay Later is a service that will allow you to finance an Apple Pay purchase over a short period of time.
What about Apple Savings?
For Apple Savings, even Gurman has no idea when the savings account could launch. After announcing the product in the fall and saying that it would launch "in the coming months," the reporter notes that there since "hasn’t been a word from Apple or Goldman Sachs about the release."
Apple Savings will be a high-interest savings account offered exclusively at launch to Apple Card cardholders, but what that interest rate will be is also still unknown. The rumored hardware subscription is also radio silent over the last few months.
Gurman attributes all of this to engineering challenges that the company is working through. According to him, Apple is working on developing its own internal next-generation financial technology to handle "interest calculations, rewards, credit checks, approvals, and transaction histories — all things that are currently overseen by partners."
Maybe Apple will delay all of this and announce the Apple Checking account at WWDC?!
