Lunchtime Seminar: Buy Now Pay Later and its Latent Risks

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Buy Now Pay Later and its Latent Risks

SYNOPSIS

Buy Now Pay Later has been lauded as among the latest trends in smart ‘ways to pay’, riding on the wave of digital disruption that has gained traction internationally. At the same time, concerns have been raised over harm to vulnerable consumers mired in unanticipated debt. This research facilitates a deeper understanding of the phenomenon from a bottom-up perspective through a survey of 400 Malaysian consumers, focus groups, and an interview with the Consumer Association of Penang. The article explores how digitalisation, payment by instalments and providers’ advertising strategies can collectively mask the risks for unsuspecting consumers. Insights from the analysis are used to inform proposals to strengthen the emerging Malaysian regulatory framework.

Malaysia is the first country in ASEAN to introduce consumer credit legislation. This has the potential to inform the development of regulatory frameworks in other ASEAN Member States. Yet as a pioneer in consumer credit regulation in the region, there are real risks that transplantion of laws developed for Western industrialised countries, without consideration of the contextual differences, may result in unintended consequences. Closer examination of their respective contexts suggests that there are fundamental disparities that are likely to exacerbate the harm that the poorest Malaysians face. The findings highlight the urgent need to address the underlying problem of poverty to avoid unintended consequences. The research further considers the regulatory architecture that can enhance or impede the effectiveness of the reforms.

SPEAKER

Dr. Vivien Chen
Senior Lecturer
Director of Higher Degrees by Research
Department of Business Law and Taxation
Monash Business School

Vivien researches consumer credit regulation and protections for vulnerable consumers in Australia using empirical methods and sociolegal approaches. Her work has been cited by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, and influenced law reforms such as the Bankruptcy Amendment (Debt Agreement Reform) Act 2018 (Cth). Her publications in leading Australian journals include ‘Online Payday Lenders: Trusted Friends or Debt Traps’ and ‘Safeguarding Australian Consumers from “Debt Vultures”’. She is also author of the monograph Self-dealing by Company Directors in Malaysia and her articles have been published in the American Journal of Comparative Law and the Journal of Law and Society.

Vivien was awarded Best Paper Prize by the Society of Corporate Law Scholars in 2013 and 2018 (joint), and Graduate Student Article Award by the Asian Law and Society Association in 2018. She is honorary research fellow for the Australian Research Council Linkage project on harmful financial products, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne, and has previously held an academic position at the University of Malaya. Vivien is Director of Higher Degrees by Research at the Department of Business Law and Taxation, Monash Business School. She also teaches a postgraduate unit on corporate governance and social responsibility.

CHAIR

Professor Loo Wee Ling
Associate Professor of Law
Singapore Management University

DETAILS

Date: 9 April 2024, Tuesday
Time: 12pm to 1pm
Venue: Meeting Room 5-04, Level 5, Yong Pung How School of Law, SMU

(Bento lunch will be provided)

REGISTRATION

Please click HERE to register