The result seems similar.

結果似乎差不多。

You don't pay upfront, but with BNPL, you can break that full payment out into installments usually with no interest.

無需預先付款，但透過 BNPL，你可以將全額付款分期付款，通常無需支付利息。

Buy now, pay later firms have boomed over the last three years, and companies like PayPal, Apple, and credit cards themselves are joining in on the hype.

過去三年裡，「先買後付」的公司蓬勃發展，PayPal、蘋果等公司和信用卡本身也加入了這場炒作。

But as some of the companies scale up with their growing customer base, they're struggling to turn a profit.

但隨著一些公司隨著客戶群的不斷擴大而擴大規模，他們正在努力扭虧為盈。

Here's how buy now, pay later services compare to credit cards and what it means for the next time you're checking out.

以下是「先買後付」服務與信用卡的比較，以及它對您下次結帳時的意義。

Everything today is pay-as-you-go.

如今，一切都要現收現付。

Dan Dolev is an analyst who follows companies like Affirm, Block and PayPal.

Dan Dolev 是一位分析師，關注 Affirm、Block 和 PayPal 等公司。

Credit is becoming a pay-as-you-go thing especially in very young millennial demographics.

信用卡正在成為一種現收現付的方式，尤其是在非常年輕的千禧世代人口中。

Buy now, pay later companies took off in the US during the pandemic.

疫情期間，先買後付的公司在美國蓬勃發展。

Affirm, the only BNPL focused company that's public in the US reported its revenue more than doubled over the last two years.

Affirm 是唯一一家以 BNPL 為重點的美國上市公司，其收入在過去兩年中增長了一倍多。

One of the main ways these companies make money is through merchant discount rates.

這些公司賺錢的主要方式之一是通過商家折扣率。

A fee the retailer pays to the company on each buy now, pay later purchase.

零售商在每次購買後向公司支付的費用。

Selling is better than not selling, and merchants are willing to accept somewhat of a discount in order to make the sale.

賣總比不賣好，商家願意接受一定程度的折扣以進行銷售。

The number of retailers signed on to use Affirm jumped from just 6,000 in 2020 to 235,000 in 2022.

簽約使用 Affirm 的零售商數量從 2020 年的 6,000 家躍升至 2022 年的 235,000 家。

Part of the reason for its popularity is that buy now, pay later is more accessible than a credit card.

其受歡迎的部分原因是「先買後付」比信用卡更方便。

BNPL is very attractive to people who have credit difficulties.

BNPL 對於有信用困難的人來說非常有吸引力。

Todd Baker is a lecturer at Columbia Law School who's worked as an executive in finance and teaches about emerging Fintech.

Todd Baker 是哥倫比亞法學院的講師，曾擔任金融領域的高階主管，教授新興金融科技。

Other people do it just because it seems like a good idea.

其他人這麼做只是因為這似乎是個好主意。

Let's go back to that cart with our Adidas.

讓我們回到愛迪達的購物車裡。

With a credit card, tou need approval to use that credit often well before you put your shoes in the cart.

使用信用卡時，通常需要在將鞋子放入購物車之前獲得批准才能使用該信用卡。

Companies like Affirm, Klarna and Afterpay, on the other hand, can approve on the spot and make approvals purchase by purchase.

另一方面，Affirm、Klarna 和 Afterpay 等公司可以當場批准並逐筆批准購買。

That's because of the different ways they check your credit.

這是因為他們檢查信用的方式不同。

Credit card companies do a deep dive into your credit history that shows up on your credit score.

信用卡公司會深入研究你的信用記錄，這些記錄會顯示在你的信用評分上。

Buy now, pay later companies typically perform a less formal credit check and look at additional data like previous times you've used their service.

先買後付公司通常會進行不那麼正式的信用調查，並查看其他數據，例如你以前使用其服務的時間。

BNPL can give more spending power to people who may not have access to credit or have credit built up, but that can be an issue.

BNPL 可以為那些無法獲得信貸或已累積信貸的人提供更多的消費能力，但這可能是一個問題。

There is a risk that credit will be extended to you in a situation where you're not likely to be able to repay and that's not good either for the issuer of the credit or for the consumer.

在你不太可能無法償還的情況下，存在向你提供信貸的風險，這對信貸發行人或消費者都不利。

Affirm's CEO Max Levchin says the company accounts for this.

Affirm 的 CEO Max Levchin 表示該公司有考慮到這一點。

We do have to say no and tell our consumers with love and compassion, "You're overextending yourself. Please don't buy this."

我們必須說不，並用愛和同情心告訴我們的消費者：「你超支了。請不要買這個。」

Klarna says it also takes measures to make sure it only extends loans to borrowers who can repay.

Klarna 表示，它還採取措施確保只向有能力償還貸款的借款人提供貸款。

Both Klarna and Afterpay restrict use of their services if a borrower misses a payment.

如果借款人未能付款，Klarna 和 Afterpay 都會限制其服務的使用。

Buy now, pay later lacks some of the regulated safeguards that credit cards have for consumers in the US.

先買後付缺乏信用卡為美國消費者提供的一些監管保障。

That's in part because they're not covered by the Truth in Lending Act.

部分原因是它們不受《美國誠實借貸法》的監管。

This is a law that requires that lenders provide you all of your loan information upfront, no hidden costs.

該法律要求貸方預先向你提供所有貸款信息，無隱藏費用。

It applies to loans that are paid for in more than four installments.

它適用於分四期以上支付的貸款。

Buy now, pay later falls just below that.

先買後付略低於此。

The product was structured essentially to avoid the application of the Truth in Lending Act.

該產品的結構本質上是為了避免適用《美國誠實借貸法》。

The beauty of BNPL for the retailers is that it's instantaneous and the provision of significant disclosure before a particular transaction would be very difficult.

對於零售商來說，BNPL 的優點是它是即時的，並且在特定交易之前提供重大披露將非常困難。

Affirm says it provides a truth and lending disclosure for all credit extensions and Klarna says it supports additional regulation of the sector.

Affirm 表示，它為所有信貸延期提供了真相和貸款揭露，Klarna 表示，它支持對該行業進行額外監管。

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also warns that consumers could risk over extension meaning they have more debt than they can handle.

消費者金融保護局也警告說，消費者可能會面臨延期的風險，這意味著他們的債務超出了他們的承受能力。

This could happen because they could borrow from multiple lenders at once since BNPL platforms can't see borrowing activity on other platforms.

這種情況之所以會發生，是因為 BNPL 平台無法看到其他平台上的借貸活動，因此他們可以同時向多個貸款人借款。

Customer defaults, when they happen, can have an impact on company's costs.

客戶違約一旦發生，可能會對公司的成本產生影響。

So they have to balance the risk of delinquencies with approving enough transactions to cover their costs.

因此，他們必須平衡拖欠風險與批准足夠的交易以支付其成本。

That's the key to a successful buy now, pay later.

這就是先買後付後成功的關鍵所在。

It's underwriting, underwriting, underwriting.

就是承保、承保、承保。

Klarna said that its underwriting practices have helped keep its default rates below 1%,

Klarna 表示，其承保實務有助於將違約率控制在 1% 以下，

but delinquencies aren't the only thing that can undermine profits.

但拖欠並不是唯一會損害利潤的因素。

Shifting consumer habits can cut down on transactions, and many buy now, pay later programs rely on funding that is sensitive to interest rates.

消費者習慣的轉變會減少交易，許多「先買後付」計畫依賴對利率敏感的資金。

Since merchant fees make up the bulk of their profit, companies might have to raise them to make up for higher borrowing costs.

由於商家費用佔其利潤的大部分，公司可能不得不提高費用以彌補更高的借貸成本。

If interest rates go up a lot, then they're in trouble because the cost of money's gonna be too high to more than offset with the merchant discount rate.

如果利率大幅上升，那麼他們就會遇到麻煩，因為資金成本太高，無法抵銷商家折扣率。

Affirm and Klarna offer services beyond BNPL, and are continuing to diversify their offerings.

Affirm 和 Klarna 提供 BNPL 以外的服務，並繼續使其產品多樣化。

But they're also facing increasing competition from Apple, PayPal and credit card installment plans.

但他們也面臨來自蘋果、PayPal 和信用卡分期付款計劃的日益激烈的競爭。

Still, for some buy now, pay later CEOs, like Affirm's Levchin, the competition is clear.

不過，對於一些先買後付的執行長來說，例如 Affirm 的 Levchin，競爭是顯而易見的。

The enemy or the competitor is the credit cards, not each other.

敵人或競爭對手是信用卡，而不是彼此。

Despite these challenges, Delev thinks that buy now, pay later is here to stay.

儘管面臨這些挑戰，Delev 認為「先買後付」的模式將繼續存在。

And as they become bigger and offer more services, they will be able to gain scale and increase profitability.

隨著它們變得更大並提供更多服務，它們將能夠擴大規模並提高獲利能力。

But some buy now, pay later firms like Afterpay have been bought by larger companies.

但有些先買後付的公司，像是 Afterpay，已經被大公司收購了。

The fundamental question has always been, is BNPL a business or is it just a product for other providers of financial services?

根本問題始終是，BNPL 是一家企業還是只是其他金融服務提供者的產品？

And I think the consensus seems to be shifting towards the idea that BNPL as a standalone business is not likely to be successful in the competitive market.

我認為，人們的共識似乎正在轉向這樣一種觀點，即 BNPL 作為獨立企業不太可能在競爭激烈的市場中取得成功。