A New Game for the Upstarts
Every crisis, however, presents an opportunity for someone. While the established players are wringing their hands, a new breed of financial firm is likely rubbing theirs with glee. If traditional banks tighten the purse strings because lending at 10 percent isn't worth the risk for many customers, where do those people go? They go to the alternative lenders, of course.
The "buy now, pay later" crowd, for example, must be looking at this as an early Christmas present. Their models, often built on interest-free instalment plans, suddenly look even more attractive compared to a credit card, even a capped one. I think we could see an acceleration of the shift away from revolving credit towards these more transparent, fixed-term payment options. This policy, ironically, might just legitimise the very disruptors the big banks have been trying to keep at bay.