REVIEW OF BUY NOW, PAY LATER (BNPL) SCHEME BASED ON SHARIA: POTENTIAL FOR SHARIA-COMPLIANT CONTRACT MODELS

This study aims to analyze the current BNPL practice operating in Indonesia and to find out the extent to which existing OJK regulations and DSN-MUI fatwas can be the legal basis for Sharia BNPL, as well as formulate a BNPL operational model that is compliant with sharia in Indonesia. This study uses a qualitative approach with a normative-empirical method. The normative approach is carried out through the review of the fiqh muamalah literature, DSN-MUI fatwa, and OJK regulations to examine the validity of contracts and the basic principles of digital transactions. Meanwhile, an empirical approach is carried out through interviews with sharia fintech practitioners, the Sharia Supervisory Board (DPS), academics, and regulators to see the implementation of BNPL in practice and issues that arise in the field. The results of the study show that the BNPL practice that is currently running is not fully in accordance with sharia because it contains elements of riba through an interest-based fee charging scheme and late fines. The unclear ownership of goods (qabd) and the contract mechanism in the transaction process also raises the potential for gharar and dharar for consumers. In addition, the existing OJK regulations and DSN-MUI fatwa are still general and have not touched on the technical operations of sharia BNPL specifically, especially related to multi-contracts, margin-ujrah structures, and the validity of digital contracts. As a contribution, this study offers three models of sharia BNPL, namely Wakālah–Murābahah, Kafālah bil Ujrah, and multi-contract structures (al-'uqud al-murakkabah). Of the three, the Wakālah–Murābahah and Kafālah bil Ujrah models are positioned as models that are considered to be applicable in BNPL schemes. Meanwhile, the Kafālah + Qard + Ijārah model shows the highest level of sharia risk.