An interview with Max Levchin on Affirm, the US CFPB’s inquiry into BNPL services, problems with credit cards, the current economic environment, and more (Lauren Goode/Wired)

Hannah Lang / Reuters:
The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to start regulating BNPL companies, such as Klarna and Affirm, and will release guidance in the future  —  The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) plans to start regulating “buy-now, pay-later” (BNPL) companies like Klarna and Affirm Holdings …

Eric Johansson / Verdict:
London-based buy now, pay later startup Tymit raised a £23M Series A led by retailer Frasers Group  —  Late fees and a white label credit card are two of the things that make Tymit stand out in the increasingly crowded buy-now-pay-later market.  —  The buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) industry has had a really bad 2022.

Juli Clover / MacRumors:
PayPal plans to add support for iPhone’s Tap to Pay feature in its PayPal and Venmo iOS apps “soon”, add Apple Pay to its checkout options, and more  —  The PayPal and Venmo iOS apps will soon offer Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone functionality, allowing merchants that use PayPal …

Lauren Goode / Wired:
Match Group plans to add profile verification to Hinge in November, asking users to provide a video selfie, aiming to crack down on scammers  —  To combat the scourge of fake accounts, the dating site will ask users to prove their humanity by capturing a video selfie.

Amanda Hoover / Wired:
Some Twitter users, concerned about Elon Musk’s ownership, are moving to alternative platforms, including Mastodon, which has seen sign-ups surge, and Discord  —  Discord, Mastodon and other services are bustling as Twitter fans make backup plans for their online social lives.

Reuters:
The SEC says a secret change to FTX code allowed Alameda to borrow FTX funds irrespective of the collateral value, giving a “virtually unlimited line of credit”  —  In mid-2020, FTX’s chief engineer made a secret change to the cryptocurrency exchange’s software.