KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 — The Dewan Negara has passed the Consumer Credit Bill 2025, after eight senators participated in the debate on the proposed legislation.
The bill was tabled for its second and third readings by Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying.
She said the bill will provide the foundation for a regulatory framework governing the conduct of the credit industry and offering stronger consumer protection through the establishment of a Consumer Credit Commission (CCC).
Any entity wishing to operate Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) schemes, including international entities seeking to enter the Malaysian market, must be licensed by the CCC.
“BNPL companies must also submit periodic reports to the CCC, and unlicensed entities will be subject to enforcement action by the commission,” Lim said during the winding-up of the bill’s debate today.
Under the bill, BNPL companies will be required to conduct creditworthiness and affordability assessments before offering any BNPL financing.
This includes evaluating a credit user’s income and financial commitments to ensure they can repay borrowed funds without facing serious financial strain.
It also empowers the CCC to supervise other credit providers and service providers currently unregulated, to raise professionalism across the industry and create a safer credit environment.
“For instance, in detecting misconduct related to advertising — as well as loan agreement terms — the CCC may use methods such as complaint analysis via its complaints system, mystery shopping, and web scraping,” she said.
On enforcement, the bill grants the CCC the authority to issue warnings and impose monetary penalties of up to RM500,000 per non-compliance, alongside directing corrective measures.
Lim added that the CCC also has the power to suspend or revoke the licences of credit providers or registrations of credit service providers.
It will be empowered to issue standards and guidelines detailing mandatory data protection requirements that industry participants must follow.
The CCC will also be able to take enforcement action against any non-compliance related to the handling of credit user data.
