While some BNPL providers have raised concerns about the costs associated with their products needing to meet the same obligations as credit cards and home loans, Saadat said he was generally pleased with the direction the government was going in its design of a tailored regulatory framework for the industry.

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Despite cost-of-living pressures, Saadat said there was no notable increase in signs of financial stress by its customers.

“More than 95 per cent of all instalments are being paid on time, and 98 per cent of all purchases are incurring no late fees,” he said. “The amount of losses from customers who are unable to pay us back has remained stable at about 1 per cent of total consumer receivables.”

However, the Bank for International Settlements in December warned the rapid global growth in BNPL services could create risks in the financial system, due to a possible build-up of loans that are more likely to go bad than credit cards or personal loans.

Saadat said there were no major shifts in the areas people were using Afterpay, but that it was more mainstream among young people.

“Overwhelmingly, people are still using it to pay for the kinds of things we expect them to be using it for,” he said. “The main categories include clothing, household items, beauty products and footwear. People under 40 are not using credit cards to the same extent that other generations did ... they’re now using Afterpay instead of credit cards.“

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