finsmart-news_admin 
Card-issuing platform Marqeta is leaning hard into buy now, pay later as it looks to broaden its customer base and reduce dependence on Block, which still accounts for nearly half its revenue.
The company processed $91 billion in volume in the second quarter, up 29% from a year earlier, while net revenue rose 20% to $150 million. Gross profit climbed 31% to $104 million. Interim chief executive and CFO Mike Milotich said the results reflected “strong growth” and progress toward profitability.
BNPL programs and lending products were among the biggest contributors, Marqeta said, with Europe a standout — transaction volumes for pay-over-time services there more than doubled year-on-year. The segment now includes long-time partners like Afterpay, Affirm and Klarna, and newer offerings such as Marqeta Flex, which lets lenders embed BNPL directly in payment apps.
Afterpay, owned by Jack Dorsey’s Block, said more than 10% of 1,000 customers surveyed reported being asked by a bank or mortgage broker to cancel their BNPL accounts as part of the home loan process. The same customers said they were later pitched a credit card by those same institutions. Afterpay did not name specific banks or brokers.
BNPL services like Afterpay offer short-term, interest-free loans with minimal credit checks, a model that has become popular among younger consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. But as banks tighten scrutiny of applicants’ liabilities, those same services are now coming under pressure.
Marqeta’s push comes after a 2023 deal renewal with Block’s Cash App card at lower pricing forced Marqeta to look for higher-margin business. Block’s share of net revenue has since fallen from more than 70% in 2023 to the mid-40s, though the agreement now runs through mid-2028.
The latest showcase for the strategy is Klarna’s U.S. debit card, launched this summer, which lets customers choose to “pay now” or “pay later” on the same card. Built on Visa’s Flexible Credential technology, the product runs over Marqeta’s rails. “The future of payments is flexible, and we’re proud to enable this new offering together with Visa,” said Rahul Shah, Marqeta’s chief product officer.
The company also moved to strengthen its international reach. Last month, it closed the acquisition of UK-based TransactPay, giving it an e-money licence and BIN sponsorship capabilities in Europe — both crucial for scaling BNPL and credit programs outside the U.S.
Milotich told investors the focus now is on “innovative card programs” and value-added services that can diversify revenue. For Marqeta, that means making BNPL less of a checkout niche and more of a core payments feature and, in the process, building a business less tied to a single customer.
