Buy Now Pay Later Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2032

This report describes and explains the buy now pay later market and covers 2017-2022, termed the historic period, and 2022-2027, 2032F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global buy now pay later market reached a value of nearly $176.83 billion in 2022, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 57.2% since 2017. The market is expected to grow from $176.83 billion in 2022 to $1,100,213.1 million in 2027 at a rate of 44.1%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.7% from 2027 and reach $2,705,372.3 million in 2032.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the increase in the adoption of online payment methods, strong economic growth of developing countries and increase in the number of smartphone users. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period included a rise in cyber security concerns.

Going forward, the increasing internet penetration, rising penetration of e-commerce, rising urbanization and increasing government support will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the buy now pay later market in the future include a lack of awareness of BNPL services and high availability of multiple payment options.

The buy now pay later market is segmented by channel into online and point of sale (POS). The online market was the largest segment of the buy now pay later market segmented by channel, accounting for 98.2% or $173.65 billion of the total in 2022. Going forward, the POS segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the buy now pay later market segmented by channel, at a CAGR of 48.4% during 2022-2027.

The buy now pay later market is segmented by enterprise size into large enterprises and small and medium enterprises. The large enterprises market was the largest segment of the buy now pay later market segmented by enterprise size, accounting for 74.6% or $131.98 billion of the total in 2022. Going forward, the small and medium enterprises segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the buy now pay later market segmented by enterprise size, at a CAGR of 47.0% during 2022-2027.

The buy now pay later market is segmented by end use into consumer electronics, fashion and garment, healthcare, leisure and entertainment, retail and other end users. The consumer electronics market was the largest segment of the buy now pay later market segmented by end use, accounting for 38.7% or $68.37 billion of the total in 2022. Going forward, the healthcare segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the buy now pay later market segmented by end use, at a CAGR of 53.2% during 2022-2027.

Western Europe was the largest region in the buy now pay later market, accounting for 48.7% or $86.06 billion of the total in 2022. It was followed by North America, Asia-Pacific and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the buy now pay later market will be Asia-Pacific and North America, where growth will be at CAGRs of 55.7% and 43.3% respectively. These will be followed by Western Europe and South America, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 41.2% and 32.7% respectively.

The global buy now pay later market is highly fragmented, with a large number of small players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 2.1% of the total market in 2022. Affirm Holdings Inc was the largest competitor with a 0.6% share of the market, followed by PayPal Holdings Inc. with 0.5%, Block, Inc with 0.3%, Zip Co Limited with 0.2%, Klarna Bank AB with 0.2%, Latitude Group Holdings Limited with 0.1%, Sezzle Inc with 0.1%, Amazon.com, Inc with 0.1%, Visa Inc with 0.05% and Laybuy Group Holdings Limited with 0.01%.

The top opportunities in the buy now pay later market segmented by channel will arise in the online segment, which will gain $903.68 billion of global annual sales by 2027. The top opportunities in the buy now pay later market segmented by enterprise size will arise in the large enterprises segment, which will gain $659.84 billion of global annual sales by 2027. The top opportunities in the buy now pay later market segmented by end use will arise in the consumer electronics segment, which will gain $357.70 billion of global annual sales by 2027. The buy now pay later market size will gain the most in Germany at $197.36 billion.

Market-trend-based strategies for the buy now pay later market include focus on new product launches to strengthen their position in the market, focus on using cloud technology for enterprises catering to B2B, B2C and B2B2C markets and to improve operational efficiency, focusing on artificial intelligence (AI) to bring intelligence, efficiency and personalization to the market, focus on offering customers cutting-edge digital services to strengthen their position in the market and focus on strategic partnerships and collaborations to expand their geographical presence.

Player-adopted strategies in the buy now pay later market include focus on enhancing its business operations through strategic collaborations and partnerships, focus on strengthening its operational capabilities through the launch of new solutions and focus on expanding its business capabilities through strategic acquisitions.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the buy now pay later companies to focus on new product launches, focus on integration with cloud based payment solutions, focus on use of AI-powered buy now pay later (BNPL) services, focus on technology advancements, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on strategic partnerships and collaborations, focus on fast-growing channels, focus on competitive pricing, participate in trade shows and events, continue to focus on B2B promotions and continue to target fast-growing end-user industries.