81 per cent of consumers in Thailand now managing personal finances digitally: New Mastercard research
Benefits like speed, convenience, and flexibility contribute to the shift in how Thai consumers manage their personal finances.
Thailand – September 22, 2022 – Most Thai consumers have now gone digital when it comes to managing a range of personal financial matters, including paying bills, banking, opening new bank accounts, and financial planning. Based on the Mastercard New Payments Index 2022, 81 per cent of consumers in Thailand have used digital tools for at least one financial task in the last year, with paying bills (78 per cent), banking (75 per cent) and opening new bank accounts (64 per cent) forming the top three.
The latest data on payment habits, attitudes and preferences was published in Mastercard’s second annual New Payments Index: a global consumer survey spanning 40 markets across five regions, including seven in APAC: Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam.
Interestingly, when it came to personal financial management, the survey found that Thai consumers were typically more enthusiastic about using digital forms of payments than the regional average. This same enthusiasm mapped to Thai consumers’ broader use of payments, with 94 per cent having used at least one digital payment method like digital wallets, QR codes, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), cryptocurrencies, biometrics and other forms of digital payments in the last year, compared to the APAC regional average of 88 per cent. What’s more, 80 per cent of Thai consumers increased their usage of at least one digital payment method during the same period, demonstrating momentum.
“Although digitization brings a broad array of benefits—greater access to e-commerce, more economic transparency, more security—in many ways it’s the everyday tasks where it makes a big difference. In recent years, Thai consumers have increased their usage of digital payment options, often showing high engagement with new and emerging technologies. The survey results indicate that this comfort extends beyond payments, and now includes daily personal financial management, demonstrating the pervasiveness of digital technology in their everyday lives. This change is a positive sign for the continued digitization of the economy, and will help to spur long term, sustainable growth in Thailand,” said Aileen Chew, Country Manager, Thailand and Myanmar, Mastercard.
When asked about their reasoning for using digital methods to pay bills, convenience was the top response (85 per cent), followed by the fact that it was seen as more secure/safe (61 per cent), and that it gave consumers more control over their money (56 per cent). However, concerns remain about security, indicating an opportunity for service providers to offer consumers additional education and reassurance.
Thai consumers are also among the most enthusiastic in the region about using emerging payment technologies, with digital wallets leading (63 per cent), followed by account-to-account payments (55 per cent), and QR codes (54 per cent). Notably, Thai consumers have been strong adopters of cryptocurrencies, with 25 per cent using them to pay in the last year (compared to the regional average of 13 per cent).
