iPhone subscription service, Apple Pay Later financial services delayed: Mark Gurman

Apple’s upcoming financial services, which include a buy-it-now and pay-later service Apple Pay Later, an Apple Card Savings account and an unannounced iPhone subscription program, have reportedly been delayed. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company’s upcoming offerings are reportedly facing engineering and technical issues, causing delays. Apple announced its Pay Later service and Apple Card Savings account integrated with its Wallet app last year. Additionally, an as-yet-unannounced iPhone hardware subscription service and Apple Pay monthly installment service are in the works, but have also reportedly encountered hurdles.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says Apple’s planned financial services are facing technical challenges. In his weekly Power On newsletter, Gurman says that Apple has found its push into the financial vertical harder than expected. “I think the delays on all four initiatives are due to engineering issues, as well as working on a next-generation financial system that will support them,” he explains.

According to Gurman, Apple is developing in-house technology to manage interest calculations, rewards, credit checks, approvals and transaction histories, all of which are currently managed by external partners. Apple’s upcoming services are another step towards reducing its reliance on third parties.

According to Gurman, Apple’s Pay Later service is expected to roll out to the public by March or April after being delayed for several months. The feature is currently in beta for Apple’s corporate and retail employees. Apple Pay Later launched last year in June, offering to split purchases into four equal payments over six weeks. Apple then said it planned to fund loans for its Pay Later service from its corporate balance sheet.

The company announced its Savings Account feature for Apple Cards in October, which would allow users to “save their everyday cash and increase their rewards in a Goldman Sachs High Yield Savings Account.” While the service was expected to launch in the coming months, Gurman reports that there has been no word on the upcoming feature.

The unannounced iPhone hardware subscription service, which would allow users to purchase iPhone models on the basis of monthly subscription-style payments, was reportedly supposed to launch in 2022 or 2023. Although there is no no word on a new launch schedule, the service should eventually debut, according to Gurman.