The Access-Based Economy in 2026: How Rent-to-Own and Related Models Are Reshaping Consumer Finance
- MD Finance Team
- Apr 30
- 2 min read
MD Finance’s new report explores how consumers are moving from ownership to flexible access across smartphones, electronics, appliances, mobility products, and other consumer assets.
The report looks beyond traditional rent-to-own and maps the broader consumer asset access sector, including:
Subscription and rental models — customers pay for access without necessarily moving toward ownership.
RTO-light models — access comes first, with optional buyout possibilities later.
Full rent-to-own and lease-to-own models — customers use the asset now and gain a clear contractual path to ownership.
PAYG locked-asset finance — customers make small recurring payments, often with device-locking technology used to manage repayment risk.
A major focus of the report is the smartphone access market. Smartphones are especially suitable for these models because they have residual value, predictable upgrade cycles, strong consumer demand, and can be digitally controlled through locking or device management infrastructure.
The regional picture is diverse.
In Europe, the market shows strong product innovation, especially in device subscriptions and rental models. Players such as Raylo, Grover, Rentik, Telerenta, Keenget, and Cashtec Upgrade demonstrate growing demand for flexible access. However, profitability remains a challenge for many companies, and recent restructuring cases highlight the risks of capital-intensive growth.
In LATAM, the market is more finance-led. Companies such as Allugator, Leapfone, and PayJoy show how access models often combine ownership conversion, credit checks, down payments, and device-locking technology. The region demonstrates strong monetization potential, but affordability and transparent pricing remain critical.
In Africa, PAYG and locked-asset finance appear especially scalable. Companies such as Watu, M-KOPA, PayJoy, and Mogo use small frequent payments, deposits, and device control to expand access to smartphones and mobility assets. The report highlights Africa as one of the strongest examples of how asset-linked finance can support inclusion while creating scalable repayment infrastructure.
In APAC, the market is highly heterogeneous. Singapore, Malaysia, and India each show different access models, from Device-as-a-Service to subscription-to-own and multi-category rental. Companies such as Cinch, Circular, BytePe, and RentoMojo show that APAC is becoming an important launch market for new device and household-asset access models.
Across regions, one conclusion is clear: the most defensible models are not simply financing or rental businesses. The strongest players control the full operating cycle — customer acquisition, underwriting, payments, device locking, collections, refurbishment, upgrades, buyout, and cross-sell.
The access-based economy is becoming a broader financial and technology ecosystem. As consumers continue to seek flexibility and affordability, rent-to-own, subscription, and PAYG models are likely to become more embedded in retail, fintech, telecom, and digital finance infrastructure.
Download the full report to explore the market taxonomy, regional comparisons, company case studies, recent launches, partnerships, and key takeaways.
