What happened
Pushing into a new segment of finance pushed Apple's (AAPL -0.57%) share price up on Wednesday. The popular tech stock added nearly 2% to its value, outpacing the S&P 500's 1.4% increase on the day.
So what
Not known as the most creative namer of products, Apple announced its Apple Pay Later service on Tuesday afternoon. The buy now, pay later (BNPL) arrangement will allow customers to divide their Apple purchases into four payments. These can be spread over as much as six weeks without incurring interest or fees on top of the purchase amount.
As with the company's branded Apple Card credit product, Apple Pay Later users can opt to track, manage -- and, of course, repay -- their loans from the tech giant through a widget in the Apple Wallet app.
The service, which will initially be available for users in the U.S. only, provides loans ranging from $50 to $1,000. The borrowed funds can, naturally, be spent through online and in-app purchases in the Apple ecosystem, but also at merchants that offer Apple Pay as a transaction option.
Now what
At the moment, only a pre-release version of Apple Pay Later is available, and by invitation at that. The company said it aims to offer it to all eligible users over the coming months. It did not get more specific.
The company quoted its vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet Jennifer Bailey as saying that, "There's no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to how people manage their finances. Many people are looking for flexible payment options, which is why we're excited to provide our users with Apple Pay Later."
