Censis-Confcooperative: ‘buy now, pay later’ has grown by 127% over three years
The phenomenon is very popular amongst young people: among Generation Z, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) accounts for 18.1 per cent of the credit facilities used. By contrast, the use of traditional small loans is on the decline
According to “The Invisible Debt”, the latest feature Censis-Confcooperative, ‘buy now, pay later’ is replacing traditional small loans. Between 2022 and 2025, in fact, the volume of credit disbursed via BNPL increased by 127 per cent, and in the last year alone the growth rate was 23 per cent. During the same period, however, traditional small loans of under €1,500 fell by 29 per cent. The instant credit system built into purchases therefore appears to have transformed, in just a few years, from a niche innovation into a standard payment method for millions of Italians.
How it works
Among the features that have facilitated the spread of Bnpl is, first and foremost, the simplicity of the mechanism behind it. The credit transaction is completed in a matter of seconds within the shopping platform itself, without the need to visit a branch or provide any documentation.
To date, ‘buy now, pay later’ accounts for 60.3% of transactions in the spending bracket of up to one thousand euros, compared with 45.7% for traditional credit. 53.4% of the products financed using this method fall into the electronics and personal care categories.
Young people
The study also reveals that the phenomenon is particularly widespread amongst the younger sections of the population. Amongst Generation Z – those born between 1997 and 2012 – Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) accounts for 18.1 per cent of the credit facilities used. And that’s not all. 19 per cent of those using this payment method have no credit history whatsoever and are accessing credit for the first time via an instalment plan integrated into an online purchase.
The risks
Despite the apparent convenience of BNPL, which stems from the simplicity of the mechanism, the Censis-Confcooperative report warns that the instant credit built into purchases may conceal certain risks. First and foremost is the risk of accumulating debt without fully realising it. Using multiple BNPL contracts simultaneously across different platforms generates small-value liabilities that escape traditional indicators of financial vulnerability. Debt thus accumulates and risks becoming visible only when it ceases to be sustainable.
