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ARTICLE · 29 NOVEMBER 2021

Buy Now Regulate Later

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With HM Treasury launching its much-anticipated consultation on regulating buy-now-pay-later ("BNPL"), it is an opportune moment to take stock of where we are, how we got here...

United KingdomConsumer Protection
Peter Finch
Peter Finch
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With HM Treasury launching its much-anticipated consultation on regulating buy-now-pay-later ("BNPL"), it is an opportune moment to take stock of where we are, how we got here, and what to expect from the new BNPL regime.

The rise of BNPL

Over the last 18 months BNPL has seen a meteoric rise across not just in the UK, but across all major credit markets. Companies such as Klarna have now become household names and had valuations to match.

Take up has been driven by a number of factors but it's clear that both the pandemic and the exponential growth in online shopping have pushed the use of BNPL to levels few expected in such a short period of time. As both mainstream lenders and new providers join the rush to provide BNPL, coupled with embedded finance permeating new markets (such as in the travel and fashion sectors), it's hard to see anything other than the rise of BNPL continue at the same speed.

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