Why is Apple getting into lending?

It’s the highest form of flattery, but is Apple really trying to copy Klarna? That’s the allegation made by the Swedish firm, which has led the way with so-called ‘buy now, pay later’ credit. Last week Apple announced that it too would be offering deferred payments via Apple Pay, as well as the option to split repayments over several instalments. It’s something that Klarna has been flogging for over a decade. And it’s already pretty popular: nearly a quarter of British shoppers have used Klarna’s services. Now its founder ​​Sebastian Siemiatkowski has accused Apple of nicking his concept.

In reality, Klarna isn’t the only, or even the first, company to offer short-term interest-free loans. But it is one of the largest. I looked into Klarna last year after coming across a similar service offered by my start-up bank, Monzo. It’s something I was initially wary of: who wants to get involved in a newfangled form of borrowing? But I’ve actually found it quite useful.