Affirm
The largest buy-now-pay-later lender in America, whose installment plans are built into Shopify checkout and Apple Pay.
12 figures on Affirm, drawn from 2 Modern MBA case studies.
The figures
US dollars10
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail value of products bought with BNPL · 2021 | $8B | 1st of 3 · top $8B | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Retail value of products bought with BNPL · 2020 | $5B | 2nd of 3 · top $8B | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Retail value of products bought with BNPL · 2019 | $3B | 3rd of 3 · top $8B | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual revenue in millions · 2021 | $870M | 1st of 3 · top $870M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual revenue in millions · 2020 | $509M | 2nd of 3 · top $870M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual revenue in millions · 2019 | $264M | 3rd of 3 · top $870M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual operating loss, the three years all three reported · 2020 | −$107M | 1st of 3 · worst −$383M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual operating loss, the three years all three reported · 2019 | −$127M | 2nd of 3 · worst −$383M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Annual operating loss, the three years all three reported · 2021 | −$383M | 3rd of 3 · worst −$383M | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Operating income in 2022, in millions of dollars | −$866M | 4th of 7 · top $1,802M | Why the scooter startups all went bankrupt |
Counts2
| Against its own chart | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Active merchants · 2021 | 29,000 | 1st of 2 · top 29,000 | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
| Active merchants · 2020 | 6,500 | 2nd of 2 · top 29,000 | Why buy now, pay later never makes money |
Case studies covering Affirm
Case study — TechnologyWhy the scooter startups all went bankruptA Bird scooter grossed $2,000 a year, cost $1,300 to buy, and $1,000 to maintain. It lost money on every vehicle, always.15 min read
Case study — FinanceWhy buy now, pay later never makes moneyThe loan you take is not funded by the company you owe. It is bought back days later, above what it is worth.13 min readNew episodes
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