Citizens Advice warns such credit schemes risk delivering ‘knockout blow’ to household finances
More than a quarter of adults in the UK will use buy now, pay later to help with festive spending, research suggests, with the proportion rising to more than half of parents with young children.
The survey for Citizens Advice also found 11% of respondents used such credit schemes to pay for groceries, a proportion that rose to 35% for regular BNPL users.
Continue reading...Swing to profit of £9.6m by Swedish firm improves its fortunes in run-up to possible £12bn flotation
The buy now, pay later company Klarna has logged its first quarterly profit in four years, improving its fortunes in the run-up to a potential $15bn (£12bn) stock market flotation and a regulatory crackdown under a possible Labour government.
The Swedish firm, which is the biggest BNPL provider in Britain and has about 150 million international customers, said on Monday that it had swung to a profit of 130m Swedish kronor (£9.6m) in the July to September quarter, marking a notable bounce from a 2bn kronor loss during the same period last year.
Continue reading...Fintech company still made second-quarter operating loss of £62m as calls grow for sector to be regulated
Klarna, a buy now, pay later firm, has reported a profitable month for the first time in three years.
The Swedish company, which allows shoppers to defer and split the cost of items but has been accused of tipping people into debt, has struggled to make money in recent years amid rising bad debts and weak consumer confidence.
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Greens announce comedian Mandy Nolan as Richmond candidate for 2025 election
We are only a year into the Albanese government, but it’s never too early to be prepared, I suppose. The Greens have announced their candidate for Richmond at the next election – Mandy Nolan.
At the last election people were desperate to kick out the Liberals, but now they’re realising Labor also wants new coal and gas, which makes the climate crisis worse, as well as billions in handouts for property moguls, which pushes up rents and house prices. Labor has no plan whatsoever to help renters and Labor’s housing bill sees the crisis get worse.
Mandy’s already got a team of volunteers ready to hit the streets and talk to Richmond residents about how the Greens are the only party fighting for renters and climate action.
The Finance and Public Administration Committee (which includes department of parliamentary services and prime minister and cabinet).
The Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee, where it will be the Department of Home Affairs show.
The Environment and Communications committee will hear from the climate change and energy department as well as environment and water. (So power prices will dominate this one).
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Buy now, pay later review has been coming for a while
The last time the issue was examined, under the previous government, it was decided the industry could regulate itself.
Continue reading...Use of BNPL services to cover essential bills raises concerns as Albanese government prepares to consult on regulating the sector
One in seven users of credit from buy-now-pay-later providers such as Afterpay or Zip had more than 20 loans last year, according to new data from consumer group Choice.
The Choice survey also found that consumers were using BNPL services to cover essential bills, with one in six using the short-term loans to cover supermarket purchases and 14% to pay for power.
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Continue reading...‘Buy now, pay later’ firm, once Europe’s most valuable private tech company, valued at less than $7bn
Klarna, the “buy now, pay later” fintech darling that was once Europe’s most valuable private tech company, has seen its value slashed by 85% to less than $7bn in its latest round of fundraising.
The company, which enjoyed stellar growth while also being criticised for potentially leading shoppers into unsustainable debt, announced the valuation after the conclusion of a difficult $800m funding round as investors continued to question the true worth of many tech businesses.
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