Young Malaysians’ US$1.3bn short-term credit spree sparks warning over bad debt

The ministry said it had recorded 65.9 million “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) purchases among younger consumers in the first six months of 2026 – equivalent to more than one in three, or 37.9 per cent, of total purchases nationwide.

As of June 30, the outstanding BNPL financing balance among this age group stood at 2.4 billion ringgit, it said. Some 96.8 million ringgit, or 4 per cent of the outstanding balance, was classified as non-performing or unpaid.

The ministry said that industry regulator the Consumer Credit Commission strictly required BNPL providers to conduct creditworthiness checks and affordability assessments before extending lines of credit to young customers.