According to the Bank of Korea's "Electronic Payment Service Usage in the First Half of 2026," released on the 18th, average daily PG service transactions totaled 1.7234 trillion won, up 12.6% from the same period a year earlier. Average daily transaction volume rose 12.1% to 36.75 million. PG services handle the transmission and receipt of payment information and settlement of funds on behalf of online shopping malls and other merchants.
By payment method, credit card payment processing, which accounts for most PG services, averaged 1.2796 trillion won a day, up 12.8% from a year earlier. Transactions rose 10.4% to 28.08 million.
Payment services using simple authentication methods such as passwords and biometric data also grew. Average daily transactions came to 1.2264 trillion won, up 16.8% year on year, while the number of transactions rose 12.8% to 38.22 million. Both figures were record highs.
The service has spread rapidly since the mandatory use of public certificates was abolished in 2015. Naver Pay, Kakao Pay and Samsung Pay are among the leading simple payment services.
By operator, electronic financial businesses such as Naver Pay and Kakao Pay expanded their influence. Their average daily transaction value stood at 680 billion won, or 55.4% of the total, up from 55.1% in the first half of last year.
Simple money transfer services averaged 1.1728 trillion won a day, up 19.8% from a year earlier, while transactions fell 1.5% to 7.43 million. The value of simple transfers also marked a record high since the statistics were first compiled.
A Bank of Korea official said, "Simple payments grew as the use of e-commerce such as open markets increased, while simple transfers saw a large rise in transfers to securities accounts."
