Goldman Sachs’ digital consumer bank Marcus is expanding its partnership with JetBlue by allowing customers to pay for airfares over time. Marcus previously offered point-of-sale financing for JetBlue vacation packages only.

Why should we care?
Goldman’s partnership with JetBlue is part of a bigger strategy to align with large brands to extend the reach of the Marcus product suite. Through an offering called MarcusPay, customers can avail themselves of a no deposit, fee-free, fixed rate point-of-sale installment loan option. MarcusPay competes with other point-of-sale financing providers like Affirm, Klarna, Afterpay, as well as offerings from other banks. The JetBlue partnership is a vote of confidence in the growth of travel-related transactions post-COVID-19, and it aims to serve young consumers who may be averse to taking on credit card debt. A recent Cornerstone Advisors study found that roughly 6% of millennials currently have one or more point-of-sale loans—double the percentage of Gen X consumers, and quadruple the percentage of Baby Boomers with point-of-sale loans.