4 out of 10 Adults Use Internet-Only Banks... 10%p Increase from Last Year

Average Savings of 14.07 Million KRW, Loans of 18.91 Million KRW
Increase in Users of Simple Payment Services
Only 13% Earned Money Through Cryptocurrency

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] The proportion of people using internet-only banks in South Korea increased last year. Four out of ten adults used internet-only banks, depositing an average of 14.07 million KRW and borrowing about 18.91 million KRW, showing an increase in usage amounts compared to the previous year. Satisfaction levels were also relatively high. About eight out of ten respondents cited advantages such as fee discounts and exemptions, as well as simple and swift processing, and answered that they were "satisfied" with using internet-only banks.

On the 27th, the Korea Financial Investors Protection Foundation announced the results of a survey on fintech usage conducted from November 27 to December 13 last year. The survey targeted 2,530 men and women aged 25 to 64 living in Seoul, metropolitan new towns, and six major metropolitan cities.

According to the results, 935 respondents, accounting for 37.0% of the total, reported using internet-only banks. This is an increase of about 10.9 percentage points from 26.1% in 2018.

The average deposit amount per person at internet-only banks was 14.07 million KRW, an increase of 2.27 million KRW from 11.8 million KRW the previous year, and the average loan amount borrowed from internet-only banks was 18.91 million KRW, up 3.91 million KRW from 15 million KRW the previous year.

User satisfaction reached 78%. Among users, 729 answered that they were satisfied with internet-only bank services, citing reasons such as "fee discount and exemption benefits (19.5%)", "simple and swift processing (17.8%)", and "being able to conveniently handle banking anytime (13.6%)".

Easy payment services provided by credit card companies, online and offline retailers, and internet portal companies were used by 1,520 respondents (60.1%) among the total respondents. This is an increase of 3.3 percentage points compared to last year.

The average monthly usage amount of easy payment service users was about 749,000 KRW, an increase of 38,000 KRW from one year ago. About 88.8% of respondents answered that they were satisfied with the use of easy payment services, citing the speed and convenience of payments as reasons for satisfaction.

On the other hand, the proportion of users of robo-advisors, which are asset management services provided by financial companies using computer algorithms, was 2.4% (60 people), similar to 2.3% a year ago, remaining low.

The average amount invested through robo-advisors was 5.81 million KRW, down about 2.24 million KRW from approximately 8.05 million KRW in 2018. Although the investment amount slightly increased among those in their 20s and 30s, the investment amounts in other age groups significantly decreased.

Also, only about 45% of respondents answered that they were satisfied with robo-advisor services.

The Korea Financial Investors Protection Foundation evaluated, "While internet-only banks and easy payment services have established themselves among financial consumers, robo-advisors have been introduced for more than three years but are still being ignored by investors."

Regarding virtual currency, 192 respondents (7.6%) answered that they "have purchased and currently hold" virtual currency, showing little difference from the previous year's survey (7.4%). The amount invested in virtual currency per person was about 8.71 million KRW, an increase of 1.78 million KRW compared to the previous year.

Among virtual currency investors, 63.4% reported losses from their investments, while only 13.8% reported profits.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.