"Can't Make a Living Selling Cards Alone"…Card Recruiters Increasingly Taking Side Jobs '↑'

Samsung Life Insurance Applies for Credit Card Solicitor Management as Ancillary Business
Number of Card Solicitors Continues to Decline After Falling Below 10,000 Last Year

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] The decline in credit card solicitors has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic. After the number of card solicitors fell below 10,000 last year, it barely held above 9,000 last month. As it has become difficult for card solicitors to make a living solely from their main job, cases of them concurrently working in card sales in other industries are also on the rise.

According to the industry on the 22nd, Samsung Life Insurance recently applied to the Financial Supervisory Service to add credit card solicitor management and education support services as ancillary tasks. This is expected to enable systematic management and education of credit card solicitors.

Samsung Life Insurance explained that the ancillary tasks were applied for in order to secure income for insurance planners and to nurture comprehensive asset management consultants who provide consultations on various financial products, including insurance. However, there have been cases in the past where insurance companies sold cards through affiliated solicitors operated by card companies.

The number of card solicitors is on a declining trend. After falling below 10,000 for the first time since the 2013 survey last year, the number recorded as of the end of March this year was 9,093. This means 124 card solicitors quit their jobs within three months from 9,217 at the end of last year.

In particular, the number of card solicitors dropped by nearly 2,000 last year as face-to-face sales became difficult due to COVID-19. The number of solicitors, which reached 22,872 in 2016, decreased to 16,658 in 2017, 12,607 in 2018, and 11,382 in 2019. After falling below 20,000 in 2017, the number also fell below 10,000 within three years.

The decline in card solicitors was largely influenced by the increase in non-face-to-face issuance and cost-cutting due to deteriorating profitability of card companies, but COVID-19 is interpreted to have accelerated this trend. As face-to-face sales became difficult due to COVID-19, card solicitors who felt threatened in their livelihoods left the industry. Relatively, card solicitors are known to have a higher proportion of livelihood workers compared to insurance planners and others.

An industry official said, "With the rapid changes in the business environment surrounding the card industry, such as the increase in online issuance and cost-cutting by card companies, it is often difficult to make a living solely from card solicitation," adding, "The decline in card solicitors seems to be an irreversible trend."