Photo: American Banker
Max Levchin, founder, chairman and CEO of Affirm, told Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec on Bloomberg Businessweek Daily that Affirm just became Sam's Club's exclusive buy-now-pay-later provider — live on the retailer's site within weeks, in its stores from 2027. Every BNPL rival chasing the same deal is, in his telling, not competitive pressure but proof Affirm already built something that works.
"It pays to use a product that has your best interest in mind as a consumer." — Max Levchin
Max founded Affirm and still runs it as chairman and CEO — and by his own account, the company is already the largest BNPL provider in North America, the standing that just won it Sam's Club's exclusive slot.
The full segment is covered here so you can skip it.
Here are the 4 takeaways that matter.
Bloomberg Talks · Oct 22, 2026 · 8 min
With Max Levchin, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Affirm
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Key Takeaways
Affirm becomes Sam's Club's exclusive BNPL provider — live online within weeks, in stores from 2027
Terms undisclosed; in-store rollout waits on signage and staff training
Max reframes rivals piling into BNPL as proof Affirm already won, not a threat to it
He calls Affirm the largest BNPL provider in North America
Affirm underwrites every transaction separately and locks the price the moment it's quoted
The extra spread a retailer pays versus a card network goes toward lowering the consumer's cost of credit, he says
Rising BNPL usage is not a recession signal, in his view — he calls the American consumer's health strong
1. Online First, Stores by 2027
Massar opened with the news: a multi-year deal makes Affirm the exclusive buy-now-pay-later provider at Sam's Club, live on the website within weeks and rolling out to stores starting in 2027. Max declined to compare the deal's terms with rivals' directly.
The in-store rollout waits on signage and staff training, not strategy
"I would integrate and launch everything yesterday if it were as simple as that." — Max Levchin
He said the staggered timing carries no hidden signal — a web integration ships in weeks, while equipping and training staff across physical stores simply takes longer.
