Analysts say Apple's new payment feature has affected several publicly traded payment stocks.
It is reported that Alex Markgraff, an analyst at KeyBanc Capital Markets, stated that Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) released Tap to Cash and Apple Pay online payment services and expanded its 'buy now, pay later' feature during WWDC 2024, which has affected several publicly traded payment stocks.
The new Tap to Cash feature allows US iPhone users to send and receive Apple Cash by holding two phones. Another feature of iOS 18 is the ability to use Apple Pay outside of Safari in desktop browsers such as Firefox, Chrome, and Edge. In a report to clients this week, the analyst wrote: "In many ways, we believe these updates bring greater parity with peers like PayPal (PYPL.US), as most digital wallets are not browser-agnostic and can't exchange rewards from other issuers in digital wallets."
The wallet enhancements also allow iOS 18 users to obtain installment financing options from banks. In addition, users can view reward or point balances in the "Wallet" and redeem points using Apple Pay online and in apps. Markgraff said the updates to Apple Pay will pose a greater challenge to PayPal, which is "trying to reboot its brand momentum in payments, and may compete with Apple Pay, Shop Pay, and other rivals."
In the 'buy now, pay later' category, 'we believe Apple Pay installment pay announcements will have a net negative impact on PayPal's Pay In 4 and Block (SQ.US) Afterpay, a net positive impact on Marqeta (MQ.US), assuming Apple remains in contact with Affirm (AFRM.US) in the new AFRM/Apple Pay structure,' he said.
Many of Apple Pay's updates are closely related to several products announced by Visa (V.US) last month, which are planned to be launched this fall," the analyst added. "Therefore, we believe these updates are positive for Visa."