Research Shows Fintech is Superior than Banks during Ramadan

ShopeePay and Jakpat Mobile Survey research shows that digital wallets (e-wallets) are more widely used by Indonesians during Ramadan. The percentage is higher than bank services such as debit or credit cards.

Jakpat Head of Research Aska Primardi said 80% of the 1,214 respondents surveyed in April chose digital wallets during Ramadan and Eid. Meanwhile, other payment methods are cash (56%), debit card (26%), and credit card (5%).

“It shows that consumers spend a lot of time at home during Ramadan. They choose to make payments for shopping with digital money,” said Aska during a virtual press conference, Monday (26/4).

As many as 87% choose digital wallets because of the many promotions. In fact, 67% of them expect cashback.

The use of digital wallets also aims to avoid physical contact in order to anticipate transmission of the coronavirus.

In Indonesia, there are several payment fintech that provide digital wallets such as ShopeePay, GoPay, OVO, DANA, and LinkAja. Even so, the bank also has mobile banking applications such as BCA Mobile and Livin by Mandiri.

For product categories purchased during Ramadan and Eid, 94% are food and beverages. Then, cooking and household needs are 78%, health products 58%, clothing 45%, beauty care 31%, and others.

People also choose to donate with digital services during Ramadan and Eid this year. More than 60% of respondents choose to give alms online. Then 94% of respondents are interested in using digital money to distribute donations or alms.

In addition, it is estimated that digital payment services are widely used for the payment of holiday allowances (THR). Research reveals that 80% of respondents choose digital money as their THR distribution method for their relatives.

Promos during Ramadan are Intensively Done

ShopeePay’s Head of Campaigns and Growth Marketing, Cindy Candiawan, said that the company will intensively hold promos during this year’s Ramadan to attract many users. “We are working with partners (merchants) to provide attractive promos and offers,” he said.

ShopeePay also launched the ShopeePay Big Ramadan Deals campaign starting today until before Eid (11/5). Promotions given are ShopeePay Deals IDR 1, Alfamart Murmer discounts up to 70%, and send thousands of gold free THR.

Another e-wallet, GoPay, also provides cashback of up to 90%. Meanwhile, OVO provides mutual fund savings of Rp. 100 thousand and cashback of Rp. 50 thousand in the form of OVO Points from April 25 – May 8.

LinkAja also provides promotions during Ramadan, one of which is saving snacks for food and beverages up to IDR 180 thousand. Meanwhile, DANA has prepared a prize of IDR 150 million. To get it, users need vouchers that are available every week from April 13 – May 9.

Sharia Fintech is Believed to Grow in 2021

The sharia fintech business is expected to grow rapidly this year. One of the reasons for this is the increasing number of new players who are currently processing permits from the Financial Services Authority (OJK).

“There are dozens of fintech lining up to get OJK permits. Some of them are sharia fintech,” said Executive Director of AFPI Kuseryansyah, some time ago.

Apart from the arrival of new players, the sharia business will continue to grow thanks to the demographic bonus of Indonesia’s population, which is predominantly Muslim.

This is an opportunity to work on because the level of sharia economy in Indonesia is still low. The presence of new regulations currently being discussed by the regulator is also an opportunity.

The plan is for a revision of the POJK / 2016 concerning Information Technology-Based Borrowing and Lending Services. This rule will make room for sharia fintech to grow which was not previously regulated in detail.

Until the end of 2020, the value of Islamic fintech loans reached IDR 1.7 trillion, up from the previous year’s realization of IDR 1 trillion. At that time, the number of registered and licensed sharia fintech players was 10 platforms.