Fintech applications are increasingly popular, particularly among tech-savvy young people. Beyond serving as payment tools, these platforms support a wide range of financial activities.

Jakpat conducted a survey to find out the behavior and habits of fintech users in Indonesia in the second half of 2024 involving 2133 respondents consisting of Gen Z (36%), Millennials (42%), and Gen X (22%). This research focuses on some digital payment types, namely e-wallets, banking platforms (mobile/internet and digital), and buy now pay later/BNPL known as paylater. Other topics discussed are the types of fintech, namely e-wallets, paylater, online loans, crowdfunding, and peer-to-peer (P2P) lending.

In general, almost all respondents use e-wallet (93%), followed by paylater (31%) and loans that provide cash (10%). Then, 47% of respondents use banking platforms, of which 88% of them use mobile/internet banking platforms and 42% use digital banking platforms.

 Gen Z digital payment methods

In the second semester of 2024, as many as 94% of respondents made digital payments. In more detail, the majority of respondents use e-wallets (80%) as digital payment methods, followed by banking platforms (47%), and paylater (28%). E-wallets are fintech that dominates as a means of payment, both offline and online.

More specifically, around 85% of Gen Z pay using e-wallets, either on direct (offline) or online shopping. Five out of 10 Gen Z use banking platforms when shopping online and 26% use paylater.

For entertainment needs, including watching concerts/at the cinema and subscribing to streaming platforms, as many as 92% of Gen Z use e-wallets. Meanwhile, 58% use banking platforms, and 31% use paylater as a payment method.

“Gen Z is a creative generation, they will always look for ways to make financial transactions without admin fees, even though the transaction process flow can be longer and require them to switch digital platforms. This method will also be done if they later encounter increased digital transaction costs,” said Jakpat’s Head of Research, Aska Primardi.

The use of fintech in Gen Z

Gen Z has a number of considerations in choosing a fintech platform. Some of them are easy payment methods (56%), user-friendly applications (50%), and registered with the Financial Services Authority/OJK (40%).

As many as 70% of Gen Z e-wallet users stated that they use the fintech platform to transfer money. Other uses are as a means of payment when shopping online (63%) and to save money (60%).

“The majority of Gen Z are digital payment users, and vice versa, the percentage of Gen Z cash users is lower than Gen Y and X. This phenomenon is also supported by the fact that Gen Z uses e-wallets for payment transactions to save.  The most widely used fintech platform is of course the one that is considered capable of providing maximum benefits with the minimum admin costs possible,” said Aska.

Meanwhile, the needs paid using paylater and loans in Gen Z tend to be the same. As many as 55% of Gen Z paylater users use it for urgent needs, followed by daily needs (32%) and paying bills (26%). The three most money needs paid using loans are also the same with different percentages, namely urgent needs of 62%, daily needs of 42%, and payment of bills as much as 35%.