Buy Now, Pay Later Spending

Buy now, pay later(BNPL) spending is expected to rise to record levels this holiday season. With so many young “buy now, pay later” shoppers already in debt from this short-term financing tool not requiring interest, questions emerge: Why do these shoppers use such a tool? And what risks does it pose to their budgets in the months     1     (come)?

The many Generation Z and millennials (typically around 40 years and younger) tend to use this short-term financing,     2     allows them to buy items and pay for them over time. Offered mostly by financial technologies, BNPL allows these customers to pay back their purchases     3     interest and with the first payment usually made at checkout. The most common “buy now, pay later” plan is     4     customers make four equal payments and pay off the debt in six weeks. It’s been a lifeline for some people, such as a university student     5     weekly income is not big enough. “BNPL provides consumers with flexible payment options so they     6     manage spending,” said Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights. That is of great importance for many consumers, especially     7     with a tendency to purchase higher-cost items.

However, since BNPL     8     (appear), warnings from experts have come into our view. They have been indicating that it’s financially unhealthy to form such a spending habit. According to New York Federal Reserve economists, BNPL may encourage debt to increase over time,     9     (influence) a consumer’s ability to meet non-BNPL commitments, or users to over extend themselves. Users should also note that     10     interest is not charged on the loan, they’ll be hit with late fees for missed payments, which can add up quickly, says the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Zhang Ying, head of WeChat Pay, introduced that WeChat Pay is beginning to attempt the launch of “WeChat Palm(手掌) Payment”, during the 2023 Open Class PRO     1     (host) by WeChat last night.

According to the     2     (introduce), in the future, users can bind (绑定) their membership cards, transportation cards, etc. to their palms     3     (achieve) “one palm to rule them all”. They can consume, pass through and verify their identity without carrying a phone,     4     is extremely convenient. 

Now this feature     5     (attract) businesses to jointly develop the technology continuously. Although the official arrange time has not been announced, given WeChat’s speed, it is highly likely     6     we will be able to use palm payment this year. According to previous tests, users only need to register palm information on palm-scanning devices and link it to their     7    (privacy) WeChat account. They can complete payments directly by     8     (scan) their palms when consuming offline, solving the embarrassing situation of difficult-to-use face-scanning offline. 

Moreover, in terms of principle, palm pattern recognition should be     9     (easy) than facial recognition, and     10     degree of individual difference is relatively large, making it more secure.