Card Recruiters Losing Ground Amid Hacking Incidents and Digital Transformation

Number of Card Recruiters Drops Below 3,500
Sales Environment Worsens Amid Privacy Concerns
Card Companies Reduce Branches to Cut Costs

The number of card recruiters, who used to set up booths in department stores and encourage customers to sign up for credit cards, has dropped below 3,500. Their roles are shrinking further due to digital transformation and various incidents in the financial sector, such as hacking.

According to the Credit Finance Association on October 16, as of August, there were 3,482 card recruiters working for the eight major specialized card companies (Shinhan, Samsung, Hyundai, KB Kookmin, Lotte, Hana, Woori, and BC). The number of card recruiters has been steadily declining each year: 7,678 in 2022, 5,818 in 2023, and 4,033 in 2024.

Card recruiters are contract workers employed by card companies. When they attract customers, card companies pay them a commission of 100,000 to 200,000 won per card issued or based on card usage. The higher the card’s annual fee or the more premium the card, the greater the commission. Additional incentives are also provided monthly or quarterly, depending on performance. If existing customers keep their cards for a long period, recruiters receive a retention bonus as well.

Although their income depends on their sales performance, there are limitations compared to other industries such as insurance. Under the Specialized Credit Finance Business Act, card recruiters are subject to a "single-company exclusivity" rule. For example, a recruiter contracted with Samsung Card can only sell credit and debit cards issued by Samsung Card. This makes sales more challenging compared to general insurance agents, who can sell products from multiple insurance companies and earn commissions from each. Although financial authorities once considered easing this regulation, the initiative was eventually abandoned. One card recruiter said, "Most recruiters also sell other financial products like insurance, loans, and savings accounts to make money," adding, "With the Financial Supervisory Service tightening its monitoring, we can no longer offer as many incentives to customers as before, making sales increasingly difficult."

The recent Lotte Card hacking incident has also had some impact on the income of card recruiters. Recruiters who are directly contracted with Lotte Card have reported difficulties in acquiring new customers. If Lotte Card is subject to a business suspension by financial authorities in the future, these recruiters could even face threats to their livelihoods. Many recruiters working with other card companies have also noted that concerns over potential personal information leaks have made customers more reluctant to sign up for cards on-site.

Card recruiters are expected to become even harder to find as the financial sector continues its digital transformation. Card companies have already shifted their main card issuance channels from offline to online by promoting various events and emphasizing convenience. As a result, the physical sales offices operated by card companies are gradually disappearing. In the first half of this year, the eight major card companies operated 158 sales offices, a 16% decrease compared to 188 offices during the same period last year.

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