Buy now, pay later (BNPL) services have shown significant growth in Malaysia as the number of active accounts jumped to 6.5 million as of end-June 2025 compared to 5.1 million accounts at the end of 2024.
Deputy Minister of Finance, Lim Hui Ying announced that the number of BNPL transactions for the first half of this year reached 102.6 million, which is an increase from 83.8 million transactions in the second half of last year. The total value of transactions also increased by 31 percent to RM9.3 billion compared to RM7.1 billion previously.
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He also expressed concern about the impact of BNPL on high-risk users, especially those with low incomes, irregular incomes or lack of knowledge in financial management. In addition, there have been complaints about abusive actions by debt collectors and fraud by individuals posing as debt management assistants.
To address the issue, the government plans to establish a Consumer Credit Commission (CCC) under the Consumer Credit Bill (CCB). The CCC will be responsible for regulating the credit business sector, which was previously not subject to supervision through a stricter licensing and registration system.
It will involve six types of businesses divided into two categories. The first group includes BNPL, leasing, and factoring (including syariah-compliant) which require a CCC license. Meanwhile, the second group includes debt collection, impaired loan or financing acquisition, and debt counseling and management which must be registered.
In addition, two other types of businesses such as syariah-compliant financing and Ar-Rahnu leasing will be regulated by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT).