Bank/BNPL Lender Divide Dominates Comments to CFPB

One theme emerging in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s request for public comments about buy now/pay later loans is that consumers need clarity over what they're getting into.

The CFPB recently sought public input about the BNPL industry from all quarters, following a probe it opened late last year of five prominent BNPL providers: Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna, PayPal and Zip.

Responses fell into two general camps. Groups representing banks, credit unions and consumer advocacy groups argued that BNPL loans may drive consumers deeper into debt and that BNPL fees and return policies are inconsistent and not clearly understood.