Beyond Traditional Risk Perception: Understanding BNPL Adoption Through an Extended Risk-Benefit Framework
Keywords:
Buy-Now-Pay-Later, BNPL, perceived risk, perceived benefit, financial attitude, usage behavior, millennialsAbstract
This study examines how perceived risks (financial, performance, privacy) and perceived benefits (functional, financial) affect Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) usage behavior among Indonesian millennials, with financial attitude as a mediating variable. Data from 274 millennial BNPL users were collected via online surveys and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Results show that all risk types significantly reduce financial attitude, with financial risk having the strongest effect. Notably, financial and privacy risk directly increase usage behavior, indicating that risk-aware consumers may still adopt BNPL out of financial necessity. Functional benefit negatively affects financial attitude, suggesting that recognizing convenience heightens caution, while financial benefit directly increases usage without altering attitude. Financial attitude is the strongest predictor of usage and significantly mediates the risk–behavior relationship, producing suppression effects in which direct and indirect paths operate in opposite directions. This study extends Perceived Risk Theory by revealing dual pathways in BNPL contexts and supports the Theory of Planned Behavior in Indonesian fintech settings. The findings imply that providers and regulators should foster positive financial attitudes through transparent communication and financial education to promote responsible BNPL usage.
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