NEW YORK—How big is buy now, pay later in the eyes of consumers? A new report has found this year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday spending spree was fueled by BNPL shoppers.
For credit unions, the growth also means attention to members’ finances will require extra scrutiny, as most BNPL purchases don’t appear on credit reports.
On Cyber Monday, BNPL purchases hit an all-time high, up 43% from a year ago, according to Adobe Analytics.
The number of items per order also rose 11% annually as shoppers used buy now, pay later for larger purchases, CNN reported in its analysis.
“While Cyber Monday and Black Friday hit online sales records, shoppers’ reliance on delayed payments could mean a financial squeeze when the bills come due. Consumers risk stacking on debt they can’t pay off with buy now, pay later purchases,” CNN said.
The report’s authors added, “Despite being fairly broad-based, with significant take-up among higher educated and higher income respondents, overall we find that those with lower credit scores and greater unmet credit needs make up a disproportionate share of all BNPL users.”
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