Bank Negara urges the government to regulate buy now, pay later to prevent consumers from overspending.
The Bank Negara requested the Ministry of Finance to develop the Consumer Credit Act because the buy-now, pay-later consumption model has become popular. The Bank Negara is concerned that individuals would overspend as a result.
The advantages of “buy now, pay later” were previously exclusively available to credit card holders, but now e-commerce platforms and e-wallet platforms have now started to provide Buy Now Pay Later services, enabling customers to buy products first and then pay in instalments.
The buy-now-pay-later trend is causing consumers to overspend and eventually become unable to pay their loans, which will lower their credit scores, according to Bank Negara. According to Bank Negara, many foreign countries have started to see a rise in “buy now, pay later,” and this tendency has now reached Malaysia.
Bank Negara has encouraged the Ministry of Finance to establish a new rule to govern buy now, pay later because it anticipates it would become a new consumer trend in Malaysia.
Before using the buy now, pay later service, the general public is recommended to familiarise themselves with the pertinent payment terms in order to avoid being hit with exorbitant late fees. Grab, Lazada, and Shopee all provide buy now, pay later options.
