As 'buy now, pay later' surges, a third of U.S. users fall behind on payments

 

Four thousand U.S. dollars are counted out by a banker counting currency at a bank in Westminster, Colorado November 3, 2009. REUTERS/ Rick Wilking/ File Photo. 

The study, conducted by software firm Qualtrics, surveyed 1,044 adult consumers in the United States last month to measure their interest in buy now pay later and found 44% had used these services before. The latest survey found younger consumers were more likely to miss payments. There has been a surge in usage of BNPL services, which allow consumers to easily split payments for purchases into installments. The boom in volumes by providers such as Klarna, Affirm Holdings , AfterPay Ltd and PayPal Holdings Inc, has been driven in part by online shopping growth during the coronavirus pandemic.

The explosive growth has led to more dealmaking and competition. Most consumers who used BNPL services said the purchase was for $500 or less, on average. Low-cost purchases were most common among Gen Z, nearly half of which have used BNPL services to pay for expenses of $100 or less, the survey found.

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Source: Anna Irrera | Reuters