The rise of digital commerce that accelerated during the pandemic has turbo-charged growth in the payments industry, particularly the "Buy Now, Pay Later" (BNPL) offering. Yet, after spiking in 2020 and early 2021, trends on the websites of the largest players have begun to decelerate, with more consumers returning to shop in-store. This slowdown may also be due to increasing default rates and a pullback in consumer spending – from inflation fears and from the lack of another stimulus. The introduction of Apple Pay Later in the fall of 2022 adds a deep-pocketed and formidable new competitor into the space, which could weigh on the performance of legacy players.