Non-face-to-face 'Remittances' Increased, but Non-face-to-face 'Offerings' Remain Uncertain

Religious Institutions Already Have Systems in Place, Showing Minimal Response

Reference image (Source=Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] Consumer response to the offering of donation payment services, which banks have been launching one after another in line with the expanding trend of online and mobile-based digital banking, has so far been minimal. This is attributed to religious institutions having their own non-face-to-face remittance services in place before the banks introduced their services.

According to the banking sector on the 11th, commercial banks have introduced systems that allow donations to be made via applications (apps) in consideration of the spread of non-face-to-face financial transactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These systems enable donations without visiting religious facilities, as restrictions on in-person worship services have increased due to COVID-19. Some systems also include religious administrative functions, such as sending donations with Bible verses or managing church member lists.

KB Kookmin Bank launched the 'Digital Donation Basket' app, a donation payment service targeting Protestant Christians, as its first digital donation service in September. In the same month, Hana Bank implemented the 'Hana One Q Mobile Donation' service based on a cash management service (CMS). On the 13th of last month, Shinhan Bank introduced an 'Untact (non-face-to-face) Donation' service that allows donations to religious organizations via URL without installing an app, and also signed a business agreement with Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism.

About one to three months have passed since then, but the response has fallen short of expectations. The Digital Donation Basket app has only been downloaded 1,000 to 5,000 times, and the number of churches registered on the app is limited to around 70.

This is considered in contrast to the recent significant expansion of non-face-to-face remittance activities. According to payment statistics released by the Bank of Korea in September, the number of internet and mobile banking users in the first half of this year increased by 3.5% and 6%, respectively, compared to the end of the previous year. During the same period, the number of mobile banking transactions increased by an average of 22.8% per day.

A banking official explained, "Many religious institutions had already established their own remittance services before the banks launched theirs," adding, "It seems that the demand for bank services was not as large as expected."

Since early this year, 18 major domestic churches have been preparing donation systems through apps or websites. Yoido Full Gospel Church, which has the largest number of congregants among single churches, has encouraged donation payments through its dedicated app since 2012. It is estimated to have over 100,000 users.

It is also pointed out that the existence of similar services in the mobile app market has influenced this atmosphere. As of January 2018, 7,500 churches had joined the app 'Online Church Member Center,' which provides religious administrative services such as donation management and QR attendance. The app has been downloaded over 100,000 times on Google Play.

There are also voices suggesting that the situation should be monitored further since the service is still in its early stages. A commercial bank official said, "If the number of users increases over time, the bank may expand the content or scale of the service." Another bank official explained, "It is difficult to show immediate results, but discussions about service expansion are also underway."

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