Having been involved in the development of digital banks across three continents over the last decade, Anthony Thomson is now heading up the UK board of Sydney-based buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) provider Zip. The company – which claims partnerships with merchants across a number of sectors since it began operating in the UK in March – has more than 7.3 million customers across 13 markets.
Growing use of BNPL as an alternative to credit cards has, however, attracted the attention of regulators, with the UK's Financial Conduct Authority stating that it will consult on new rules for the sector in 2022.
“Regulations are a good thing when they are appropriate for the market, and I think they will improve the standard of buy-now-pay-later in the UK,” Thomson tells Euromoney. “It is not for me to prejudge the regulator, but I like to think, based on everything we are doing, that we will be regulated because we are setting standards way in excess of what the regulators are looking to.”
Thomson believes that his skills and experience will help Zip as it grows in the UK, given his familiarity with the issues, challenges and growth pains faced by businesses in personal finance.
