Get in on the action: BNPL customers cited motives for using installment payments

The main motives for using installment payments are the opportunity to buy more quality items and psychological comfort from gradually parting with the purchase amount. This is stated in the research of one of such services - "Dolami" (available at Izvestia). At the same time, up to 90% of clients of such services understand well the terms of payment by installments, in particular, the differences from the loan and the probability of delinquency. Now the BNPL market is not regulated. The bill is being discussed by stakeholders, the Central Bank said. They believe that it is important to protect the rights of installment users. Whether its presence will affect the ability to get a loan and what to pay attention to when paying for goods in installments - in the material "Izvestia".

Psychologically more comfortable

More than a third of users of BNPL-service (32%) noted that payment in installments allows you to buy more quality things, according to the study "Dolami" (part of the ecosystem of T-Bank). It surveyed citizens who have made at least one purchase with the service over the past year. The same proportion of respondents (32%) noted the psychological comfort of gradually parting with the purchase amount. At the same time, the opportunity to stretch the payment over time is more appreciated by young people - 45% of customers who chose this answer option are under 25 years old.

At the same time, Russians often use BNPL services to pay for purchases in installments, even if they have the entire amount in hand. 82% of respondents did so. Almost half of such customers noted that they used BNPL to plan their budget or to afford better goods and services.

The BNPL services product is aimed at an audience of active and advanced online shoppers, the press service of "Yandex Split" said. There they added: for such users, the ability to split a payment into several parts is one of the ways to plan expenses and control the budget.

They know what they are paying

Almost all users of the BNPL service (96%) said they understand the difference between installment payments and credit. Slightly fewer customers (81%) said they were aware that penalties accrue in case of delinquency, and that it can lead to denial of a subsequent free installment plan. 92% of respondents are aware of the limits on the amount of payment in installments.

The most unobvious condition for Russians was that payment in installments does not affect credit history. Only 36% of respondents answered correctly.

How Russia wants to regulate installment payments

Now the authorities are actively discussing the introduction of regulation of the installment market and BNPL. Such a bill was submitted to the State Duma in August, but it has not yet been adopted even in the first reading. The document suggests that service operators will be obliged to transfer information about the issuance of installments to the credit bureaus, if the purchase amount exceeds 15 thousand rubles. In this case, such purchases will begin to be taken into account in the indicator of the debt burden of citizens, which means that they will affect the ability to get a loan from a bank and a loan from an MFI.

In addition, it is proposed to limit the maximum period of installments. From December 2025, the maximum period of installments will be six months, and from December 1, 2027 - no more than four months. The bill also sets a limit on the amount of the late payment penalty.

However, last week the Presidential Council for Codification and Improvement of Civil Legislation did not support the bill. In particular, they noted that it may lead to the fact that the same relations will be regulated differently. The RF Ministry of Finance, in turn, supported the deputy bill on the transfer under the control of the Central Bank of the regulation of services of purchases in installments, but proposes to raise the maximum limit to Br100 thousand and not to reduce the maximum period of installments from six to four months.

Now the bill is being discussed by all interested parties, reported "Izvestia" in the press service of the Bank of Russia. They added: it is important to organize the protection of the rights of the user of installments at the same level at which the borrower is now protected when applying for a consumer loan. A person should understand the real cost of installments, what the penalty for violation of payment terms may be, including if interest is not charged.

Romances for finance: Russia wants to toughen penalties for MFIs

This measure is proposed by public activists because of the growth of violations of citizens' rights by microfinance organizations

It is also important that from a certain amount of debt information about such purchases was transferred to the BCI to understand the overall level of creditworthiness of a person, the press service of the Central Bank. They explained: it can affect the risks of bankruptcy of citizens, and the overall transparency and stability of the financial system.

To address this issue, some BNPL market participants have started to jointly assess the metrics of customers' payment burden using decentralized technologies, i.e. without disclosing the amounts and the name of a particular BNPL provider.

If the bill is passed in its current form, the already small market of BNPL services could suffer, according to the press service of Yandex Split. They added: limiting the terms and maximum amount of installments without transferring data to the BCI will affect the number of goods that users can pay in installments, and deprive them of the opportunity to plan their budget with the help of BNPL-services. And this will affect the business of small and medium-sized companies. Primarily, sales in the home appliances, electronics, education and travel segments will decline.

"We support the need to regulate installments, and most importantly the regulator's desire to separate classic lending and BNPL services, as BNPL should not replace loans. The banking market already has established and clear credit products, for example, POS-lending, which cover certain needs of customers. We would not like to mix them with fintech innovations in the form of BNPL, the market of which is just forming," - noted in the service "Dolami", adding that, in their opinion, for BNPL-services sufficient installment period is three months.

"There is no need for six months as these terms are already covered by credit. At the same time, the limit should be revised upwards - 60 thousand rubles. In addition, we do not see any justification for banning purchases of goods and services through BNPL from individuals," they concluded.

Pros and cons of using installment services

One of the pros of using installment services is an opportunity for customers to distribute payments and reduce the financial burden in the current month, said Irina Panova, branch manager of AMsec24 Insurance Brokerage.

At the same time, when paying in installments, one should be attentive to the dates of the next tranche. The delay will result in fines, emphasized Anna Gondusova from Alfa Capital Management Company.

In addition, it is worth watching whether there is an overpayment for the use of installments, warned the leading analyst on bank ratings "Expert RA" Vadim Krapp. For example, whether there is a difference between the price of goods when paying the amount at once or in installments, as well as whether the fee for additional services is built in.

In general, the draft law on market regulation can help establish clear rules of the game, increase transparency and prevent abuse by some unscrupulous providers, says Irina Panova of insurance broker AMsec24. However, it is important that the draft takes into account the interests of both clients and companies offering BNPL in order to generally keep an innovative financial product on the market.