Vitapay Advance Payment Service Supports Online Small Business Owners with Fast Settlement

The year 2020 was a year in which all sectors of society made strenuous efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) through strengthened social distancing and bans on gatherings of five or more people.

With the start of vaccinations in March and hopes that the reduction in new confirmed cases would help overcome the current situation, financial support services for online small business owners have been gaining attention amid the acceleration of online consumption.

Last year, online shopping transaction volume already exceeded 12 trillion won, continuing to set new records. According to data released by Statistics Korea, the online shopping transaction amount in January 2021 totaled 15.0623 trillion won, an increase of 22.4% compared to the same month the previous year, amounting to a rise of 2.7534 trillion won. While offline retail sales declined due to the normalization of contactless consumption, online retail recorded a high growth rate.

Although the online market is maintaining relatively smooth sales compared to offline, online business operators share a common concern despite ongoing favorable conditions. They point out that due to settlement policies of open markets and social commerce platforms, settlements can take up to 90 days, creating a need for settlement date adjustment services. Especially nowadays, with the increase in contactless consumption, the need for quick settlements to secure funds for product purchases is growing daily. In response to this demand, first-tier financial institutions and other financial companies have launched various early settlement products.

Among the various settlement date adjustment services being introduced, DS Solutions Co., Ltd.'s VitaPay service has also received strong responses from many users last year.

On the 19th, DS Solutions Co., Ltd. announced that the amount of online and offline early settlements through the VitaPay service grew by approximately 70% in 2020. Although it has been continuously growing every year, this year showed a significant increase. The expansion of PG early settlements in 2020 led to more sellers using VitaPay.

Looking at the detailed categories of online early settlement amounts, the food category, hygiene products category, and toys and stationery category showed growth rates of 44.9%, 58.9%, and 65%, respectively. In the first quarter of this year, early settlement amounts in categories such as food, hygiene products, and interior?highlighted as contactless services?are expected to drive sales.