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Privacy concerns and trust have recently been proposed as crucial issues in consumers' adoption of online services. Therefore, we have used an extended theory of planned behavior (TPB) to investigate how privacy concerns and trust influence consumers' attitudes toward the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL). We also examined the mediated role of trust in the relationship between privacy concerns and attitude. An online survey was conducted among Indian undergraduate and postgraduate students, as BNPL is most popular among young consumers. We found that privacy concerns decrease consumers' trust and attitude towards BNPL. Specifically, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavior emerged as significant predictors for consumers' intention to use BNPL. A complementary partial mediating role of trust in the relationship between privacy concern and attitude was discovered. That implies that users apprehensive about their data's security are less likely to trust that the provider will safeguard their information. However, by increasing trust, users' privacy concerns can be reduced in BNPL services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the article. This article aims to present the characteristics of BNPL and the excessive debt risk it poses within the context of widespread consumerism. Methodology. The study relies on secondary data obtained through a thematic literature review, encompassing scientific publications and industry reports. Focusing on the Polish BNPL market, the research synthesizes this information to outline BNPL’s operational characteristics, identify determinants influencing Polish consumers' adoption of BNPL, and discuss both the prospects and risks associated with BNPL usage. Results of the research. Findings indicate that BNPL facilitates consumer purchases by deferring payments, which can drive consumerism and increase the inclination to use BNPL, thus accelerating its growth. The simplicity and convenience of BNPL, coupled with the absence of immediate financial repercussions, can lead to irresponsible usage and push consumers into an excessive debt trap. Additionally, a lack of economic knowledge, particularly financial literacy, further heightens the risk of a debt spiral. In the context of broader discussions on BNPL, other significant risks must be considered, as the expansion of these services depends on meeting expectations similar to those of other digital lending options. This includes establishing consumer trust in BNPL, largely through mitigating such risks. Like other digital services, BNPL requires the sharing of personal data, introducing potential security concerns. Therefore, BNPL providers must prioritize data protection to secure consumer information. Additionally, consumers should stay cautious to avoid fraud, like phishing, by being aware of the risks.

The purpose of the article. The purpose of the article is to identify opportunities and threats for consumers related to BNPL payments. Methodology. The article uses the analysis of existing data (in particular the current reports on the BNPL sector) and the results of a questionnaire survey. The CAWI questionnaire survey was conducted on a group of 100 people (50 women and 50 men) in January–February 2024. The survey was addressed to the group of people aged 25–34 due to the fact that, in the light of literature research, people of this age most often use deferred payments. The survey was sent to graduates of the Faculty of Economics and Sociology of the University of Lodz who fit into the deferred payment customer profile. Results of the research. The article identified opportunities and threats for customers of the BNPL sector, highlighted a profile of a customer using deferred payments, and presented the legal and psychological aspects related to deferred payments. Additionally, the article compared BNPL payments with credit cards, bank loans and non-bank loans, and related the results to the potential risk of over-indebtedness.

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As the utilization of modern fintech credit products, such as Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL), continues to grow, there is a growing need to enhance our understanding of their adoption. This study aims to uncover the determinants of BNPL adoption by identifying factors from technological, economical, and psychological (TEP) perspectives. This research examines consumer adoption of BNPL by drawing upon the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and Self-Determination Theory (SDT). A cross-sectional research design was utilized in this study, and data from 226 participants were analyzed using Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Further, the study used importance-performance map analysis (IPMA) to identify the importance and performance of each independent variable against the intention to adopt BNPL. The findings support the hypotheses that technological factors, performance expectancy, and effort expectancy significantly influence the intention to adopt BNPL. Moreover, the economic factor, the flexibility of payment, is positively associated with forming a positive attitude toward BNPL adoption. Further, psychological factors, perceived competence, and perceived relatedness positively influence perceived usefulness, which, in turn, positively affects the intention to adopt BNPL. The study offers valuable strategic insights for BNPL service providers to formulate impactful go-to-market strategies for broadening their customer reach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Buy-now-pay-later" (BNPL) is a relatively unregulated FinTech innovation that provides consumers with easy access to credit for retail purchases. BNPL spending is projected to reach $1 trillion by 2025, but we know little about its effects. Using banking data for 10.6 million U.S. consumers, we investigate the effects of BNPL on leading indicators of users' financial health. We find that new BNPL users experience rapid increases in bank overdraft charges and credit card interest and fees compared with nonusers, consistent with BNPL facilitating overborrowing. An instrumental variable exploiting consumers' pre-BNPL shopping habits bolsters our inferences. Our results inform regulatory investigations into the effects of BNPL on users' financial health and expand academia's understanding of an important consumer credit innovation. This paper was accepted by Camelia Kuhnen, finance. Funding: E. deHaan acknowledges financial support from Stanford University; B. Lourie and C. Zhu acknowledge financial support from University of California Irvine. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.03266. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates the impacts of financial technology (Fintech) on traditional financial services and the emergence of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) companies within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Fintech signifies a paradigmatic shift in the financial landscape, utilizing technology to transform banking, payment systems, investment strategies, and lending practices. The BNPL model, recognized for its disruptive nature, enables consumers to divide purchases into interest-free installments, thereby reshaping global consumer spending patterns. This study concentrates specifically on the Saudi Arabian context, where Fintech adoption is experiencing rapid growth. It scrutinizes the factors that influence BNPL adoption behavior among Saudi consumers, addressing a research void in localized studies. A sample of 100 consumer participants responded to an online survey. The statistical analysis underscores the strength, significance, and correlation between financial elements and the factors crucial to the decision-making process for BNPL adoption. The descriptive analysis of Independent Variables (IVs) encompassing Performance Expectancy (PE), Effort Expectancy (EE), Social Influence (SI), and Facilitating Conditions (FC) has provided significant insights into the perceptions of consumers regarding the adoption of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services. The analysis has revealed noteworthy patterns in the data. Performance Expectancy (PE) demonstrates moderate perceptions (Mean = 2.98), indicating a measured belief in the usefulness of BNPL. Furthermore, Facilitating Conditions (FC) registered moderate scores (Mean = 3.04), underscoring the significance of favorable external factors. Collectively, these findings depict a moderate inclination and a generally positive outlook among respondents towards BNPL adoption, providing insights into the factors influencing their adoption behaviors. The research findings contribute to academic comprehension, provide insights for industry stakeholders, and inform the development of policies and regulations within Saudi Arabia's dynamic Fintech ecosystem. Future studies may utilize longitudinal studies, conduct cross-cultural comparisons, and explore technological integration in exploring the BNPL consumer behavior studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the incentives of vertically differentiated firms to offer Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) in a competitive market. BNPL is a relatively new payment mechanism which, at the point of sale, allows consumers to pay for a product in interest-free installments spread out over a few weeks/months. For a monopolist, offering BNPL is essentially about expanding the market by offering financing to the consumers who cannot afford its product. Therefore, a monopolist is always better-off providing BNPL to its consumers. However, in a competitive environment, offering BNPL is a more complex strategic decision because retailers also need to consider strategic reactions from their competitors. We find that in a competitive situation either of the two retailers might refrain from offering BNPL. This is because when one retailer offers BNPL, the other firm not offering BNPL also benefits from competitive spillovers. Although a monopolist's benefits from offering BNPL increases in its product quality, in a competitive environment, holding all else constant, a low-quality firm might have more to gain from offering BNPL. In addition to asymmetric equilibria, we also find that there is a symmetric equilibrium in which both retailers offer BNPL. In view of public concerns about possible negative impact of BNPL on consumers, we also study how BNPL consumers' ignoring the cost of using BNPL can adversely affect them. We find that underestimation of these costs lowers consumers' welfare, and this reduction in welfare stems from three different sources - (i) higher product prices, (ii) excessive purchase, and (ii) excessive upgrades to the higher quality product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates the impacts of financial technology (Fintech) on traditional financial services and the emergence of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) companies within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Fintech signifies a paradigmatic shift in the financial landscape, utilizing technology to transform banking, payment systems, investment strategies, and lending practices. The BNPL model, recognized for its disruptive nature, enables consumers to divide purchases into interest-free installments, thereby reshaping global consumer spending patterns. This study concentrates specifically on the Saudi Arabian context, where Fintech adoption is experiencing rapid growth. It scrutinizes the factors that influence BNPL adoption behavior among Saudi consumers, addressing a research void in localized studies. A sample of 100 consumer participants responded to an online survey. The statistical analysis underscores the strength, significance, and correlation between financial elements and the factors crucial to the decision-making process for BNPL adoption. The descriptive analysis of Independent Variables (IVs) encompassing Performance Expectancy (PE), Effort Expectancy (EE), Social Influence (SI), and Facilitating Conditions (FC) has provided significant insights into the perceptions of consumers regarding the adoption of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services. The analysis has revealed noteworthy patterns in the data. Performance Expectancy (PE) demonstrates moderate perceptions (Mean = 2.98), indicating a measured belief in the usefulness of BNPL. Furthermore, Facilitating Conditions (FC) registered moderate scores (Mean = 3.04), underscoring the significance of favorable external factors. Collectively, these findings depict a moderate inclination and a generally positive outlook among respondents towards BNPL adoption, providing insights into the factors influencing their adoption behaviors. The research findings contribute to academic comprehension, provide insights for industry stakeholders, and inform the development of policies and regulations within Saudi Arabia's dynamic Fintech ecosystem. Future studies may utilize longitudinal studies, conduct cross-cultural comparisons, and explore technological integration in exploring the BNPL consumer behavior studies.

This article examines key recent developments in payment services regulation in the UK and EU. In addition to proposals to reform traditional payment services legislation, it also considers proposals to regulate crypto-assets when used as a means of payment and proposals to regulate buy-now-paylater agreements, as these are increasingly offered by merchants as a means of payment. Both the UK and EU have proposed broader regulation of crypto-assets, but this article considers only those aspects of the proposals with the greatest relevance to payment services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rising popularity of fintech‐driven solutions has reshaped financial markets and retail consumer behaviour. This paper examines the growing 'buy‐now‐pay‐later' (BNPL) phenomenon as a novel, platform‐driven financial innovation to understand how this digitally mediated economic arrangement has produced new financial subjects and subjectivities. Using the idea of 'platform ecologies' that combines the relational focus of financial ecologies with the logics of platform finance, this study highlights how the intermediary role of BNPL services has reshaped relational monetary practices through algorithmically driven modes of operating. Analysing Singapore's nascent BNPL landscape through content analysis of BNPL firm websites and critical media coverage of BNPL, this paper shows how automated technologies of risk assessment and debt collection are deployed to govern borrowers and keep them digitally attached to their debts, where creditworthiness is continuously evaluated in response to user transaction and repayment data. The strategic use of affect in framing BNPL services to satisfy immediate materialist consumption masks the fundamental nature of BNPL as debt, while the targeting of young individuals with no credit history through opaque techniques of credit and risk management creates new indebted subjects. The implications of such data‐driven practices in producing greater indebtedness and further shaping financial subjectivities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]