Consumer watchdog plans to regulate ‘buy now, pay later’ lenders similar to credit card companies

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to subject “buy now, pay later” lenders to the same vigorous oversight as credit card companies, saying the short-term financing industry harvests consumer data in ways that threatens consumer privacy.

Considered a substitute for traditional credit cards, the buy now, pay later model allows consumers to pay off a loan in a few installments, most commonly four interest-free increments. The…