Buy Now, Pay Later

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

June 3, 2024

In a move that is described by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) as leveling the playing field, the regulatory body announced this morning that “buy now, pay later (BNPL) customers should have the same protections as users of credit cards.” Banks have long argued, and correctly so, that fintech companies offering credit instruments should be subject to the same regulations credit card issuers must comply with. Almost a quarter of U.S. consumers recently used a “buy now, pay later” product offered by the likes of AfterPay, Klarna, PayPal, and Zip.

Some argue, however, that BNPL players are not transparent or always reporting consumer debt to consumer reporting agencies like Experian, TransUnion, or Equifax. This has the potential of distorting a consumers’ “credit worthiness” and under-reports true indebtedness. Without fully reporting BNPL data, consumer credit scores appear better than they may otherwise be, and the accumulated debt for U.S. consumers would be higher than reported.

News You Can Use

April construction spending figures and May auto sales kick off the week of economic news today. On Tuesday, April factory orders and job openings are released in the morning, while on Wednesday we’ll receive the ADP employment report for May and U.S. trade deficit figures for April. Thursday gives us a quick look at initial jobless claims for the first week of the month, while on Friday we’ll learn of May consumer credit results, April wholesale inventories, U.S. unemployment figures for May, and U.S. hourly wages.

Companies hosting earnings calls this week include CIBC and SAIC today. On Tuesday, several retailers are scheduled including Bath & Body Works, Designer Brands, Donaldson Company, and Stitch Fix. Lululemon Athletica leads off the Wednesday calls and is joined by Brown-Forman, Campbell Soup, Dollar Tree, ChargePoint, Five Below, and Victoria’s Secret. J.M. Smucker, Ciena, Nio, The Toro Company, and DocuSign are among the others with calls on Thursday. There are no calls scheduled for Friday.

Michael J. Quaranta

President

Delaware State Chamber of Commerce

Uniquely Delaware

World Population Review - Delaware Ranks #6 for Highest Growth Rate

The country's second-smallest state by area at 2,489 square miles (mi²), Delaware was home to roughly 1,017,551 individuals as of 2023. This proved to be an increase of 13.32% from the country's 2010 population, the 13th-highest/38th-lowest population increase in the US. Though Delaware is the least-populated state on the East Coast, it nonetheless boasts the country's sixth-highest population density at 522 people/mi²—more than five times higher than the US national density of 96 people/mi². This is thanks in no small part to Delaware's comparatively small total area of 2,489 mi².

The Mill is a community and co-working space that provides shared workspace for entrepreneurs, remote workers, startups, and established businesses. They have two locations in Wilmington and will soon open a space in Seaford.

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