Survey : Russians Users of Non-Cash Payment Methods Increase Drastically

News24xx.com -  The number of people transacting with electronic wallets in Russia has increased significantly, making it an electronic payment method that is preferred by 71 percent of the country's population in 2018.

Russians pay with bank cards, online banking and electronic wallets more often; to be exact, the figure is 22.8 percent more this year compared to 2017, according to the Mediascope research institute.

In its annual study of online payments, Mediascope surveyed Russians in the 12-55 year age group living in cities with a population of more than 600 thousand.

Bank cards remain the most popular online payment method, used by 88.9 percent of respondents. People who pay through online banking have grown by 8.9 percent, or increased to 87.2 percent.

Payments with cellular are also increasingly popular; the number of users has increased 3.5-fold. The Mediascope reports that 36.3 percent of respondents pay with their smartphones.

The most active online consumers are those aged 18-34 years. Russian youths aged 12-17 years are equally fond of electronic wallets and online banking, and rarely pay with bank cards.

Yandex.Money, which is used by 48.5 percent of respondents, is a leading service among electronic wallet service providers. Next is WebMoney and PayPal, 38.9 percent and 38.6 percent respectively. QIWI is the fourth most popular electronic wallet in Russia, with 36.2 percent of users prefering this service.

For online shopping, most respondents use electronic wallet payments. Russians also pay online for digital content such as films, music, books and social media. Sberbank Online is the most popular online banking service provider in Russia, with 81.7 percent of respondents using it.

Contactless payment systems include Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Google Pay. The latter was used by 18.7 percent of respondents, making it the most popular service. 

The second is Apple Pay, favored by 16.5 percent of Russians; and Samsung Pay with 12.3 percent.