Beyond credit cards: A TEP perspective on buy-now-pay-later adoption

As the utilization of modern fintech credit products, such as Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL), continues to grow, there is a growing need to enhance our understanding of their adoption. This study aims to uncover the determinants of BNPL adoption by identifying factors from technological, economical, and psychological (TEP) perspectives. This research examines consumer adoption of BNPL by drawing upon the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and Self-Determination Theory (SDT). A cross-sectional research design was utilized in this study, and data from 226 participants were analyzed using Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Further, the study used importance-performance map analysis (IPMA) to identify the importance and performance of each independent variable against the intention to adopt BNPL. The findings support the hypotheses that technological factors, performance expectancy, and effort expectancy significantly influence the intention to adopt BNPL. Moreover, the economic factor, the flexibility of payment, is positively associated with forming a positive attitude toward BNPL adoption. Further, psychological factors, perceived competence, and perceived relatedness positively influence perceived usefulness, which, in turn, positively affects the intention to adopt BNPL. The study offers valuable strategic insights for BNPL service providers to formulate impactful go-to-market strategies for broadening their customer reach.