Electronic Payments Hit Record High in 2020 amid Pandemic

This undated photo shows an entrance to a store where KakaoPay is available. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, March 29 (Korea Bizwire) – The amount of payments made electronically hit a record high last year, central bank data showed Monday, as the COVID-19 pandemic prompted people to engage in contact-free commerce.

The daily average amount of electronic financial transactions came to 705.5 billion won (US$624 million) in 2020, up 32.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The reading marked the highest amount since the central bank started collecting data on electronic payments in 2007.

The data also showed the daily average number of electronic financial transactions jumped 48.5 percent on-year to more than 16.79 million.

Electronic financial transactions include all internet and mobile-based payments, as well as purchases made with electronic credit and debit cards.

As of the end of 2020, there were 143 electronic financial service providers in South Korea, according to the BOK.

They include escrow and payment gateway service providers, as well as online financial institutions that are strictly dedicated to online or mobile payment services.

(Yonhap)