BNPL stocks tumble as Australian govt's impending regulations weigh

Splitit

22/05/2023 03:48

** Shares of buy now, pay later (BNPL) firms decline after
Australian govt says it would introduce laws that will consider
BNPL services as credit product
    ** BNPL services will be required to have credit licence,
make allowances for financial hardship and minimum standards for
conduct that could subject them to the same laws as credit card
providers - Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones
    ** ASX-listed shares of Afterpay owner Block Inc  SQ2.AX 
fall as much as 2.1%, their biggest intraday pct drop since May
15
    ** Zip Co Ltd  ZIP.AX  tumbles up to 7.8% to A$0.53, their
sharpest single-day drop since Feb. 23
    ** U.S. BNPL player Sezzle Inc  SZLDA.AX  and Splitit Ltd
 SPT.AX  down 2.1% and 2.2%, respectively
    ** Humm Group  HUM.AX  and Latitude Group  LFS.AX  are both
flat
    ** Govt will unveil draft legislation for consultation later
this year and bill will be introduced into parliament by end of
this year: local media reports
    

 (Reporting by Harish Sridharan in Bengaluru)
 ((harish.sridharan@thomsonreuters.com))