Mobile app adoption of fintech services to reach nearly 80% by end of 2024

The adoption rate of financial technology in the Philippines through mobile apps among the population aged 15 years old and above may increase to 79.5% or approximately 66.4 million unique users by the end of 2024, a new analysis from consumer credit service Digido revealed.

Growth of said adoption rate is expected to primarily come from the Digital Commerce segment, forecasted to contribute 34%, followed by Digital Wallets at 27.2% and Digital Banking at 8.6%.

From September 2018 until June 2024, the Philippines' mobile adoption rate of fintech services among adults was 76.2% (63.1 million unique users), and the number of cumulative downloads of fintech mobile applications in the country during that time frame reached 617 million.

By sector, digital commerce led the way with 31.4% of downloads, followed by digital wallets at 21.7% and digital lending at 20.3%. Making up the rest were digital payments and transfers (11.6%), digital personal finance apps (8%), and digital banking (7%).

Solely examining absolute figures during the first half of 2024, the most significant growth of downloads was seen in the digital lending sector at 25.4 million, followed by digital commerce at 13.5 million and digital wallets at 12.2 million. Digital payments and transfers, digital banking and digital personal finance applications garnered 7.8 million, 6.2 million, and 4 million, respectively.

On average, Digido observes that the number of downloads is constantly growing at a rate of approximately 10.26% per half-year. Over the first six months of 2024, the digital banking sector experienced the highest download growth rate, at 22.34%, followed by digital payments and transfers (17.72%) and digital lending (16.81%).

Commenting on the analysis, Digido business development manager Rose Arreco explained: "The positive numbers seen in digital lending, digital wallets, and digital commerce can be attributed to growing trust in these segments and their natural synergies with one another. As strong demand for fintech in the Philippines continues, so too do Filipinos' expectations on convenience, interoperability, and improved user experience across these applications."

"We believe that the Philippines remains on course towards widespread digitalization, with its 'fintech-ization' far from weakening. Collaboration within and outside the industry remains paramount for this growth to be realized faster," Arreco added.