---
title: Buy now, panic later
description: BNPL is a friendly jingle, and younger generations have taken the bait.
---

[Hustle News ](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news)

# [Buy now, panic later](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/03152022-bnpl)

 Written by [Jacob Cohen](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/author/jacob-cohen) | Mar 15, 2022 7:11:06 AM

Today, [more than](https://www.klarna.com/assets/sites/2/2020/01/21085652/klarna-deep-dive.pdf) war and death, younger generations are afraid of debt.

It’s one reason “Buy Now, Pay Later” platforms do [~$100B](https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2022-02-17/buy-now-pay-later-you-might-regret-it?sref=3Ac2yX40) in sales and are growing at a 40% clip. “BNPL” is a friendly jingle, and the youths have taken the bait.

Unfortunately, data shows they’re struggling with the “pay later” part:

- In the U.S., [50%+](https://www.creditkarma.com/about/commentary/buy-now-pay-later-surges-throughout-pandemic-consumers-credit-takes-a-hit) of Gen Zers and millennials say they’ve missed at least 1 BNPL payment.
- [~8%](https://home.barclays/news/press-releases/2022/03/two-in-five-gen-z-shoppers-using-unregulated-bnpl-feel--overwhel/) of the UK’s BNPL Gen Zers have been contacted by debt collectors.

Fortunately, regulators are [catching on](https://www.wsj.com/articles/buy-now-pay-later-credit-score-equifax-how-to-prepare-11645985862), and bureaus are now starting to follow BNPL activity on credit reports.

[View full post](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/03152022-bnpl)

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