ACCORDING to the Consumer Credit Oversight Board (CCOB), there are currently about 2.9 million active users of the buy now, pay later (BNPL) credit service in Malaysia. From January to September 2023, there were about 52 million transactions worth RM4.3bil. The volume of transactions grew at an average of 21% every quarter.
Ease of accessing BNPL services (without credit assessment of the buyer) and the relatively “low” monthly payments involved may give consumers a false sense of purchasing power, causing them to spend more than they can truly afford and then end up being caught in a debt trap.
