New Zealand-based Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) lender Laybuy has entered receivership after unsuccessful attempts to find a buyer for the struggling business.
Listed on the Australian stock exchange in 2020, Laybuy’s shares once soared as high as A$2.30. However, the company delisted last year after its share price plummeted to a mere A0.6 cents. The firm faced significant challenges, leading to a reduction of its workforce by a third in July 2022 and the abandonment of plans to separate its UK arm.
“While we have been making good progress over the last two years, the economic downturn has been longer than we expected, and this has had a significant impact on the retail sector in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom,” stated founder Gary Rohloff. “As a result, we have seen reduced consumer spending, higher credit losses, and increased fraudulent activity. This, alongside increased financing costs, created a perfect storm that was difficult to recover from.”
Laybuy has appointed Deloitte to oversee an orderly wind down of its operations. Customers have been warned of potential temporary interruptions to some systems or the possibility of going offline for short periods.
In 2021, Laybuy raised A$35 million for an expansion into the UK market. Notably, the UK-based entities continue to trade and have not been placed in receivership.
For more details on Laybuy’s journey and its current status, visit Laybuy.
