hoolah Welcomes MAS’ Decision to Review Buy Now Pay Later Schemes
by Fintech News Singapore February 9, 2021Singaporean buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform hoolah issued a statement welcoming the decision of the Monetary Authority of Singapore to review the sector over growing concerns for consumers’ financial welfare.
The Singaporean regulator had previously stated that it would be looking into the appropriate regulatory approach to review the current BNPL solutions being offered as the sector has remained largely unregulated so far.
MAS‘ sentiment was also echoed by several other regulators globally including UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) who were concerned about the amount of money being lent in unregulated transactions.
The BNPL solutions could potentially lead to consumers facing financial distress over missed payments and mounting hidden interest fees.
However, hoolah said that the added scrutiny was welcome as its business is wholly focused on responsible spending.
The BNPL startup added that it had always taken a proactive approach in making sure its users do not fall into debt as “even new users have more stringent limitations on their active orders at any one time to prevent them from overspending”.
hoolah stressed that it rejects transactions when it see users “moving towards the wrong direction” and asserts that it will continue to invest in education and awareness around financial literacy and promoting responsible spending amongst consumers.
The startup had managed to raise an undisclosed seven figure seed funding and an additional eight figure capital injection during its Series A funding round, reflecting the growth of the BNPL sector and interest among investors.
Stuart Thornton
“We highly welcome the regulator’s review of the BNPL sector to ensure financial and social responsibility in Singapore. Our business is wholly focused on responsible spending – ‘Responsible Affordability’ has been our motto since we founded the business from day one – and our approach to risk management and consumer care.
Our business model is never based on late fees – it is only sustainable with long term consumer relationships with our proprietary risk decision engine protecting consumers, making sure they do not go beyond defined limits to prevent overspending.”
said Stuart Thornton, CEO and Co-Founder, hoolah
Featured image credit: edited from MAS and hoolah
