Affirm, the online lender founded by Max Levchin, expanded beyond credit and entered the debit market four years ago with a card that let users pay over time. Now the company is making it possible for banks to offer that service to their customers.

Affirm, which pioneered the buy now, pay later business (BNPL), has partnered with FIS in a deal that will allow the fintech company to offer the pay-over-time service to its banking clients and their millions of individual customers.

Any bank that partners with FIS will be able to provide its own version of the Affirm Card, which launched in 2021, without asking customers to adopt a new piece of plastic. Consumers can access Affirm’s biweekly and monthly installment plans and have the money automatically deducted from their checking account.

There are approximately 230 million debit card users in the U.S., according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. BNPL services have traditionally been tied to credit cards or standalone financing products, rather than to debit offerings.

“Consumers today are looking for innovative and user-friendly experiences that give them flexibility and control over their money,” Jim Johnson, co-president of banking solutions at FIS, said in the press release. Affirm’s offering can help banks “offer more competitive, differentiated services through their own banking channels,” he said.

Affirm has over 335,000 merchants in its network, ranging from travel booking sites and concert ticket providers to jewelry stores and electronics providers. By bringing BNPL into the debit world, Affirm aims to provide consumers more alternatives to credit.

In its earnings report last week, Affirm reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and posted a surprise profit from the holiday period. The stock rocketed 22% after the announcement.

Affirm’s active consumer base grew 23% year over year to 21 million users. The Affirm Card now has 1.7 million active users, up more than 136% from the year-ago quarter. Card volume has more than doubled.

In June, Affirm and Apple announced plans for U.S. Apple Pay users on iPhones and iPads to be able to apply for loans directly through Affirm.

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British oil major BP on Tuesday posted a sharp drop in fourth-quarter profit on weaker refining margins, announcing a $1.75 billion share buyback and a pledge to “fundamentally” reset its strategy.

The energy firm posted underlying replacement cost profit (RC profit) — used as a proxy for net profit — at $1.169 billion in the fourth quarter, compared with $2.99 billion in the same period of last year and with an analyst forecast of $1.2 billion, according to a LSEG poll.

The company attributed its quarterly 48% drop in RC profit to “weaker realized refining margins, higher impact from turnaround activity, seasonally lower customer volumes and fuels margins and higher other businesses & corporate underlying charge.”

BP’s net debt hit just shy of $23 billion in the fourth quarter, increasing 10% year-on-year. Capital expenditure (capex) hit $3.7 billion in the October-December period, a steep drop from the $4.7 billion of fourth quarter 2024.

Despite this, the embattled energy company launched a $1.75 billion share buyback for the fourth quarter, with a dividend per ordinary share of $0.08. Analysts had previously questioned whether BP would slow down its share repurchases to reconcile its balance sheet.

“BP has guided to buybacks of $1.75bn to 1Q results, although no guidance is given beyond this. We had expected a cut to a lower run-rate with results, although there was some uncertainty whether the reduction in buyback would be given with the CMD or results. We continue to expect BP to reduce its buyback programme,” RBC analysts said Tuesday.

In its business breakdown, BP noted a 15% year-on-year drop in the RC profit performance of its gas & low carbon energy to $1.84 billion, despite a sharp recovery from $1 billion in the previous quarter. Oil production and operations jumped 37% on an annual basis, while the company flagged an overall “weak” contribution from its oil trading division following weaker refining margins.

BP shares were little changed following the results, down just 0.13% at 08:40 a.m. London time.

Oil majors have weathered a turn in tide over the past year, as crude prices retreated after initial support following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and Western and G7 sanctions against Moscow’s barrels. In a January trading update, BP flagged higher corporate costs, lower fourth-quarter realized refining margins and one-off charges linked to its bio-ethanol acquisition.

BP has broadly underperformed its peers, with shares falling roughly 9% over the last year to the end of last week — compared with 6% gains for Shell. The stock gained ground on Monday, following weekend reports that activist investor Elliott Management has built a stake in the struggling oil major, fueling speculation that the influential hedge fund could pressure the energy company to shift gears on its core oil and gas businesses.

Speculation has otherwise long mounted over whether BP could become a takeover target – though the company’s  £74-billion size could pose a challenge for suitors.

BP has sought to turn its fortunes through a major restructuring that included a downsize in leadership amid Auchincloss’ efforts to deliver at least $2 billion of cash savings by the end of 2026. In January, the firm expanded its cost-cutting drive to cut 4,700 of roles and last week revealed it is seeking buyers for its Ruhr Oel GmbH German refinery assets. But concerns linger over the clarity of BP’s strategic direction amid its sprawling green energy ambitions — with the company due to supply its next strategic update on Feb. 26.