The corona crisis has further increased interest in online banking. It may not be a very surprising conclusion, but research by Mastercard has now confirmed this supposed trend. The American payments and technology company even speaks of an acceleration, a development that favors "online only" banks.
Covid-19 itself has its side effects, but not necessarily all negative in nature. Simply because there was no other way, digital banking adoption has taken off. The demand by retailers to pay digitally and the forced closure of many bank branches won over many people who were still cold feet. A significant number even did so permanently.
The need for online solutions is great, according to Mastercard's European Evolution of Banking survey. It is an entirely logical consequence of the fact that many conventional options were temporarily unavailable or discouraged. More than half (62%) also show interest in online banking, banks without a physical branch network. That's a 13 percentage point increase over a survey from three years ago. That increase, by the way, is not necessarily due to Covid-19; in theory, it could also be due to the general trend of digitalization and effective marketing of online banks.
Regardless, Mastercard discovered obvious parallels between this European study and an earlier global study titled "State of Pay. That showed that more than half (53%) of the world's population is using banking apps more frequently since the pandemic. This is accompanied by saying goodbye to cash. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of those surveyed said they will use less cash even after the pandemic.
That proportion is much higher still when it comes to using banking apps at all. An overwhelming 87% of people who did not use banking apps before the pandemic are willing to continue using them. This is grist to the mill for parties who have their digital business well in hand. For companies that know of themselves that they do not, it is a signal to step up.
"As we all adapt to changing realities, one truth has emerged; we are increasingly living digital first," stated Mark Barnett, President of Mastercard Europe. "Europeans therefore want simple and secure solutions for all their banking and payment needs. Mastercard is the partner of choice for both established and emerging payment companies looking to digitize and improve the customer experience. Our focus is on driving innovations that improve the everyday banking and payment experience."
Just last week, millions of Europeans gained a new payment option. Paying with an Android phone was generally already possible, but now also with Google's own payment service Google Pay. Online bank Bunq had the scoop as far as the Dutch market was concerned. In total, Mastercard is working closely with more than sixty online banks within Europe, all of which account for a piece of the digital growth.
