4 out of 10 Koreans Increase Mobile Financial Service Usage After COVID-19

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] A survey found that 4 out of 10 Koreans use mobile financial services more frequently since the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the "2021 Payment Methods and Mobile Financial Services Usage Survey Results" published by the Bank of Korea on the 25th, out of 3,536 respondents, 2,313 (65.4%) reported having used financial services via mobile devices within the past month.

Additionally, the usage rate of mobile financial services was relatively higher among those aged 40 and under and households with an income level of 30 million KRW or more.

In particular, the preference for non-face-to-face transactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic has activated the use of mobile financial services. In response to a survey question about changes in the frequency of mobile financial service use after COVID-19, 42.1% answered that it had increased. By age group, the increase in usage frequency was higher among those aged 40 and under compared to other age groups.

Accordingly, the experience rate of using mobile financial services rose to 65.4%, an increase of 8.3 percentage points compared to 57.1% in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, it was found that South Koreans use credit cards the most as a payment method. Following the 2019 survey, credit cards accounted for the largest share of usage amount (49.5%) and usage frequency (43.4%) in 2021 as well. Check/debit cards and cash followed.