McKinsey research finds that 9 in 10 Americans use digital payments, and 28% use BNPL. Singapore’s BNPL code of conduct gets more industry and government attention. Analysts look at Affirm and other BNPL operator impact from CFPB oversight; some remain bullish. Bread adds BNPL virtual cards in partnership with Marqeta while Jifiti builds B2B BNPL offer.
Kuwait Central Bank is testing BNPL for potential consumer benefits. India’s Pine Labs sees 100% growth in BNPL loans during the Diwali festival shopping season. Also, in India, actyv.ai adds an embedded B2B BNPL option and insurance to its AI-based platform. Amadeus and Uplift partner to book travel now, pay later business. Finally, regulators in Australia take note of research showing one in seven BNPL consumers had more than 20 loans last year.
Consumer trends in digital payments
Nearly nine in ten Americans are now using some form of digital payments, and they are engaging with these rapidly evolving solutions in an increasing variety of ways, according to McKinsey’s 2022 Digital Payments Consumer Survey. The share of US consumers using BNPL services was 28% in 2022 vs 30% in 2021. The products for which BNPL is used changed slightly, but small-ticket categories such as apparel and mid-ticket items, including electronics and home appliances, continue to lead. McKinsey & Company
Singapore’s BNPL code of conduct needs to pave way for independent regulation
Singapore’s BNPL players ramped up self-regulation, launching a code of conduct last week – including an accreditation process, setting up a credit data bureau and forming an oversight committee (OC) for compliance. This is a step forward for the sector but does not go far enough. The code restricts how much it can protect consumers, and its enforcement is complicated by a questionable appointment method for the OC. The Business Times
Affirm bull case builds despite tougher ‘Buy Now Pay Later’ regulation
The prospect of increased regulation on Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) firms like Affirm hasn’t soured Wall Street on the burgeoning space – it helps build the bull case for some analysts. DA Davidson reiterated its Buy rating on Affirm based on the CFPB plans to regulate the BNPL space. That announcement sent Affirm and others with BNPL exposure – such as PayPal and Block – wobbling in and out of positive territory as traders debated the impact of more regulation.. Barron’s
Bread brings virtual cards to BNPL push with Marqeta partnership
Bread Financial and Marqeta launched a one-time-use virtual card for Bread Pay, a suite of BNPL products. The virtual card lets consumers apply for and immediately use their preferred Bread Pay product at checkout—online or in-store—without downloading another app. Bread will use Marqeta’s virtual card issuance, tokenization, and Just in Time funding capabilities. More than 95% of Bread’s loans are installment-based, and it projects year-end loans to total between $21 and $22 billion. Insider Intelligence
Jifiti launches B2B BNPL functionality, augmenting its robust white-labeled BNPL Platform
Jifiti launched its B2B BNPL solution available to any bank, lender and merchant that caters to business customers. Merchants connect to Jifiti’s platform via e-commerce plugins, simple API integration or Jifiti’s zero-integration virtual card technology. With the addition of B2B financing, Jifiti is rolling out its B2B solution to multiple partners across international markets, including top retail brands and financial institutions. Yahoo!
Kuwait’s Central Bank to test “buy now, pay later” product
Kuwait’s central bank (CBK) will be testing a new “buy now, pay later” product within its regulator sandbox framework ahead of its launch in the local market, it said, hailing the initiative as part of the bank’s innovative models. The new product represents a CBK effort to” support innovative fintech-based business models” to deliver value-added services to users in particular and the local market in general, according to a bank statement. Arab Times
Pine Labs sees huge demand for its buy-now-pay-later service in hinterlands
Fintech unicorn Pine Labs is expanding its efforts in India’s Tier-2 and 3 towns and hinterlands. During this festive season, the firm is witnessing a massive demand for its Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services among the offline merchant community. Pine Labs expects to process BNPL transactions worth Rs 5,000 crore ($615.7 million) this month as an increasing number of customers in small towns are buying products from physical stores using EMI (equated monthly installment). Business Standard
Amadeus meets traveler demand with BNPL option
According to research with travelers, 68% would spend more on travel if BNPL options were available. Amadeus is partnering with travel specialist, Uplift to bring BNPL services to its Amadeus Xchange Payment Platform (XPP) as part of a multi-provider BNPL ecosystem dedicated to travel. Airlines, travel agencies and hotels can easily add BNPL options to their sales channels via a single connection to Amadeus – making ‘Uplift’ BNPL options easily available to travelers across the industry. Fintech Times
B2B supply chain platform actyv.ai adds BNPL, insurance options
Global B2B supply chain management platform actyv.ai added an embedded B2B BNPL option and insurance to its AI-based platform, saying this will help make business transactions faster and easier. By linking enterprises, business partners and FIs, all parts of business transactions can be orchestrated on a single platform. Leveraging its Software-as-a-Service technology platform, actyv.ai enables easy onboarding of distributors and suppliers onto an enterprise network. PYMNTS
One in seven buy now, pay later customers had more than 20 loans last year, Choice survey shows
One in seven users of credit from BNPL providers such as Afterpay or Zip had more than 20 loans last year, according to data from consumer group Choice. The survey also found consumers were using BNPL services to cover essential bills, with one in six using short-term loans to cover supermarket purchases and 14% to pay for power. The heavy use of BNPL revealed by Choice’s survey is “extremely concerning,” the organization’s head of policy, Patrick Veyret, said. The Guardian