Affirm is expanding its partnership with New York Life Insurance, marking another milestone in the growing alignment between traditional finance and fintech-driven consumer lending.

Under the new deal, New York Life will purchase up to $750 million worth of Affirm’s installment loans through 2026 — a move that strengthens Affirm’s funding pipeline and supports approximately $1.75 billion in annual loan originations.

The partnership, which began in 2023 when New York Life started investing in Affirm’s asset-backed securities and structured lending pools, has already funneled nearly $2 billion into the fintech’s collateral-backed assets. The expansion signals renewed institutional confidence in Affirm’s lending model at a time when fintech companies are under pressure to secure reliable, long-term funding amid volatile capital markets.

“We are proud to expand our relationship with such a trusted and forward-thinking partner in New York Life,” said Michael Linford, Chief Operating Officer, Affirm. “Through our collaboration, we will be even better positioned to responsibly increase access to our flexible and transparent payment options.”

Affirm has already financed more than $100 billion in transactions, with over 90% of its borrowers classified as repeat users — a metric the company touts as evidence of disciplined underwriting and strong customer retention.

The latest move comes amid a broader shift in institutional investment strategies, as insurers, private credit funds, and pension managers increasingly target consumer lending assets to capitalize on higher yields in a prolonged high-interest-rate environment. Insurers like New York Life see structured fintech loans as offering better risk-adjusted returns than traditional bonds or treasuries, especially given the predictable cash flows tied to installment loan repayments.

“As we continue to deploy capital to create lasting value for our policy owners, Affirm has distinguished itself by delivering superior credit outcomes that generate attractive returns,” said Brendan Feeney, Managing Director, New York Life. “We’re excited to take this next step in our relationship, which exemplifies how we collaborate with industry leaders to invest in growing, high-quality assets.”

The broader trend has seen several insurers and asset managers strike similar deals with leading fintechs. Affirm has established additional funding lines with Liberty Mutual Investments, PGIM, and Sixth Street Partners, securing billions in capacity to support its lending operations.

Rival Klarna has entered comparable loan-sale agreements with Nelnet and Pagaya, while PayPal’s $7 billion arrangement with Blue Owl Capital — followed by Blue Owl’s joint venture with Meta to finance the $27 billion Hyperion data center project in Louisiana — underscores the growing integration between fintechs and institutional finance.

These partnerships are becoming vital as consumer lenders navigate an uncertain macroeconomic environment. Although U.S. consumer spending has remained resilient, inflationary pressures and high borrowing costs have tightened credit conditions, prompting fintechs to rely increasingly on external investors for liquidity. Delinquency rates, while stabilizing, remain above pre-pandemic levels in some credit categories, leading to heightened investor scrutiny over underwriting quality and loan performance.

Affirm has managed to maintain strong credit metrics relative to industry peers, helped by its focus on prime and near-prime borrowers and its data-driven risk assessment tools. The company has also expanded partnerships with major retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, and Shopify, providing installment options to millions of consumers at checkout — a strategy that continues to drive transaction growth and steady revenue.

Analysts view the Affirm–New York Life partnership as part of a maturing BNPL sector where technology firms increasingly act as loan originators and distribution platforms, while established financial institutions supply capital and risk management expertise. The model allows fintechs like Affirm to scale responsibly without over-leveraging their balance sheets.

Financial analysts have noted that institutional partnerships are the next phase of fintech evolution — where growth becomes sustainable, not just fast. The collaboration, they said, demonstrates how legacy financial giants are adapting to the digital lending age by working alongside, rather than against, fintech disruptors.

For Affirm, the partnership represents both stability and validation. As the BNPL industry faces headwinds in the U.S. and abroad, aligning with a century-old insurer like New York Life provides credibility that could help reassure investors and regulators that fintech lending can operate safely within traditional finance frameworks.

Netflix is reportedly weighing a bid to acquire Warner Bros Discovery’s (WBD) studio and streaming operations, in what could become one of the most consequential mergers in modern entertainment history.

According to three sources familiar with the matter, who spoke to Reuters, the streaming giant has retained Moelis & Co., the investment bank that recently advised Skydance Media on its successful acquisition of Paramount Global, to evaluate the feasibility of such a deal.

Two of the sources said Netflix has already been granted access to Warner Bros Discovery’s financial data room, giving it the opportunity to review detailed figures about the company’s studio and streaming assets. This step is typically seen as a precursor to a formal offer.

Both Netflix and Warner Bros Discovery declined to comment on the development. Moelis & Co. also refused to confirm its role in the talks.

If completed, the acquisition would mark Netflix’s most audacious move since it transitioned from DVD rentals to global streaming more than a decade ago. Control of Warner Bros’ vast library — which includes iconic franchises such as Harry Potter, DC Comics, The Lord of the Rings, and Game of Thrones — would immediately strengthen Netflix’s position as Hollywood’s dominant content powerhouse.

Warner Bros’ television arm is also a prolific supplier of programming to Netflix, producing hits such as You, Running Point, and Maid. Analysts say full ownership could secure Netflix a more predictable pipeline of top-tier shows and reduce its long-term licensing costs.

The deal would also bring HBO and its streaming service, Max, under Netflix’s umbrella — adding a new dimension to its prestige content portfolio and potentially boosting its subscriber base in key international markets.

Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, however, has consistently maintained that the company is “more builders than buyers.” Speaking during the company’s third-quarter investor video last week, Sarandos reiterated that Netflix is selective about acquisitions but open to opportunities that “strengthen the company’s entertainment offerings.”

“We’ve been very clear in the past that we have no interest in owning legacy media networks,” Sarandos said, explicitly ruling out an acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery’s linear television networks such as CNN, TNT, Food Network, and Animal Planet. “There is no change there.”

Warner Bros Discovery, led by CEO David Zaslav, announced last week that it was exploring strategic options after receiving multiple unsolicited acquisition offers, including one from Skydance Media, now known as Paramount Skydance. The company’s board is weighing whether to continue with its planned corporate split — which would separate its film, TV, and streaming operations from its traditional cable business — or to pursue an outright sale of parts or all of the company.

Comcast has also been named among potential bidders. President Mike Cavanagh hinted last Thursday that Comcast is evaluating “complementary” media assets that could enhance its portfolio. Addressing skepticism about regulatory hurdles, he said, “More things are viable than maybe some of the public commentary that’s out there.”

Analysts note that Netflix’s potential entry into the bidding war reflects how aggressively major streamers are repositioning amid intense competition and shifting consumer behavior. With Warner Bros Discovery struggling under heavy debt and Netflix looking to expand its original content ownership, a merger could reshape the global entertainment landscape.

If Netflix proceeds, it would represent its boldest attempt yet to integrate vertically, uniting content creation, distribution, and streaming under one roof, while cementing its dominance as both a studio and a global entertainment platform.

Getty Images shares surged 19% on Friday after the company announced a multi-year licensing deal with artificial intelligence search startup Perplexity AI, marking one of the most significant partnerships yet between a traditional media asset platform and a rapidly growing AI company.

Under the agreement, Perplexity will gain access to Getty Images’ vast library of creative and editorial photos, which will be integrated into its AI-powered search tools. The partnership allows Perplexity to display high-quality visuals within its results while ensuring that photographers and content creators receive proper credit.

“Partnerships such as this support AI platforms to increase the quality and accuracy of information delivered to consumers, ultimately building a more engaging and reliable experience,” said Nick Unsworth, vice president of strategic development at Getty Images, in a statement announcing the deal.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but analysts say the agreement underscores the growing importance of licensed data in training and enriching AI systems. Getty Images — long a vocal advocate for protecting intellectual property in the age of generative AI — has struck similar licensing partnerships in the past year, including one with Nvidia to provide legally sourced visual data for AI model development.

The new arrangement will also improve how Perplexity displays imagery on its platform. The AI firm will begin showing image credits and direct links to the original source on Getty’s website, addressing one of the most persistent criticisms of AI tools — their tendency to use copyrighted content without attribution.

Perplexity, founded in 2022 and backed by investors such as Jeff Bezos and Nvidia, has quickly become one of the most prominent challengers to Google and OpenAI in the AI search space. Its conversational search engine gives users direct, concise answers to questions, accompanied by citations and external links to verified sources — a feature that has earned it a reputation for transparency and reliability.

The company recently expanded its ecosystem with Comet, an AI browser available globally for free. Comet allows users to browse, summarize, and query the web in real time using conversational AI. It competes directly with OpenAI’s new browser, ChatGPT Atlas, which was unveiled earlier this month, and Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE), which blends generative AI answers into traditional search results.

For Getty Images, the deal represents another step in its broader strategy to remain relevant in an AI-dominated media landscape. The company has aggressively pursued partnerships with AI developers while simultaneously fighting unlicensed data scraping. In 2023, Getty sued Stability AI for allegedly using millions of its copyrighted images to train the Stable Diffusion model without permission.

By collaborating with Perplexity, Getty appears to be balancing protection and participation — asserting its rights over visual content while ensuring its vast archive remains integral to the AI revolution.

The deal is expected to serve as a model for how traditional content owners and AI firms can coexist through licensing rather than litigation. AI firms need credible, high-quality data, and content owners need to ensure they’re not erased from the value chain.

The news sent Getty Images’ stock soaring as investors cheered the company’s ability to monetize its library through AI integration. Analysts believe the collaboration could lead to similar deals across the AI industry as search companies race to enhance visual quality and source transparency in their products.