Episode summary
Affirm CEO Max Levchin Says American Consumers are Healthy | Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek Daily
· · Hosts: Carol Massar, Tim Stenovec · Guests: Max Levchin
Summary
Affirm beat expectations, saw its shares jump intraday, and reported its most profitable quarter on record, but the conversation centered on what the business says about consumer health. Max Levchin argued that the “affirmed consumer” remains healthy: borrowers are paying on time, shopping, and using 0% deals, even as elevated gas prices and stubborn inflation push families to stretch budgets. He said that pressure can actually increase demand for Affirm because customers need help managing household spending.
Levchin said Affirm mostly finances homewares, sporting equipment, and back-to-school purchases, and he drew a line between responsible short-term borrowing and financing recurring bills or subscriptions. He said the company deliberately avoids late fees and uses underwriting rules that decline loans when the repayment plan looks unsafe. Rates and approvals, he said, are set by acceptable loss targets tied to macro signals rather than by a simple one-off decision on each applicant.
On competition, Levchin said Affirm’s growth and profitability set it apart, but he emphasized transparency to borrowers and merchants as the real differentiator. He also said the company’s bank charter application is still in process and would help clarify regulation and funding if approved. Looking ahead, he said Affirm is pushing harder into in-store spending and digital wallets, including Apple Pay, to make the card and offline experience more compelling.
Key takeaways
- Max Levchin said Affirm’s customers are healthy, paying on time, and still shopping despite inflation and high gas prices.
- The company mainly finances homewares, sporting equipment, and back-to-school spending, not recurring bills or subscriptions.
- Levchin said Affirm sets approval rates by targeting an acceptable loss rate using macro signals, then adjusts approvals accordingly.
- He argued Affirm stands out by combining fast growth, consistent profitability, and transparent pricing with no late fees or compounding interest.
- Affirm’s bank charter application is still in process, and Levchin said approval would eventually help with funding costs.
- Levchin said in-store commerce is a major focus, with more investment planned for the card and digital wallets like Apple Pay.
Notable quotes
“the affirmed consumer, the ones we interact with all the time and see is healthy. They are paying us back on time”
“we are not huge fans of financing recurrent transactions and take steps to make sure our consumers don't give themselves false sense of security”
“We don't charge late fees. We don't compound interest. We don't defer interest. We are extremely transparent to our borrowers”
How the episode opens
Bloomberg Audio Studios podcasts, radio news. — You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser and Tim Stenc on Bloomberg Radio.
I'm watching shares of a firm. They jumped as much as 17% in trading to the highest intraday going back to September of 2025. This after the fintech company forecast revenue for the first quarter that beat the average analyst estimate.
shares now higher by about 2.4% so giving up some of those gains. Separately, the company and Shopify expanded their global partnership to launch Shop Pay installments in Australia. We got Matt with us, Max Levchin.
He's the CEO of a firm. He joins us from our San Francisco bureau. Max, welcome back to Bloomberg Business Week Daily.
Always good to see you. We're going to get to the results, but before that, I I want to talk about the consumer because you have this great real-time view using what many people would argue is, you know, crucial alternative data to understand the view of the consumer. How would you describe the American consumer right now?
You know, I think the affirmed consumer, the ones we interact with all the time and see is healthy. They are paying us back on time. They are shopping.
They are taking advantage of the 0% deals that we also offer them. So all those things are still going swimmingly. I think it's impossible to ignore that gas prices are elevated for them just like anyone else.
I think it inflation as you just heard chairman of the Federal Reserve tell us is still stubbornly sticking above its target. I think they are stretching their budgets when they need to do it and frankly that actually accretes to the demand for a firm. So in in some ways we are asked by our consumers to step up to the plate and help them manage their family budgets more often in the current environment.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- consumer health
- affirm earnings
- fintech lending rates
- transparency in lending
- competition in buy now pay later
Companies and tickers mentioned
- AFRM
- Affirm
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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