When it comes to money, Germans are suspicious of new technologies — that's the cliché. A recent study shows that younger people in particular are significantly more open to new Financial tools are than perhaps suspected.
German bank customers are loyal souls: Only 41 percent of those surveyed by the digital association Bitkom have ever changed their primary checking account. New accounts are increasingly being opened online. 56 percent of those who looked for a new financial institution in the past 12 months avoided a trip to the bank branch and opened the account online.
More and more users are also managing their accounts on a daily basis online. 70 percent of respondents now conduct their banking transactions online. In 2018, this figure was 62 percent, compared to just 57 percent in 2016. Online banking is particularly standard practice among the 30- to 49-year-old age group, with 93 percent of users using it. Those aged 65 and over, on the other hand, are distrustful of newer technologies: only one in five in this age group uses online banking. Banking applications on smartphones are also becoming increasingly important. In this year's survey, more than half of online banking users stated that they do this on their smartphones. Here, too, younger users are more open-minded than older ones.
"Online banking has evolved from the exception to the rule in just a few years. And now, it's not just established financial institutions that offer online services; new, purely digital competitors are entering the market,"
says Julian Grigo, Head of Digital Banking & Financial Services at Bitkom.
Mobile banking and online insurance on the rise
With the increasing acceptance of mobile banking applications, frustration is also growing that shops and restaurants in Germany often only accept cash payments. Two-thirds of respondents say they are often annoyed that they cannot pay cashlessly everywhere. Almost half could even do without cash altogether.
The study also has good news for the insurtech industry: More than half of respondents have already purchased insurance online, and among those under 65, nearly two-thirds have done so. Smaller policies such as travel cancellation and international health insurance, as well as motor vehicle and legal expenses insurance, are particularly popular online.
