58% of Consumers have Reduced Cash Transactions Since the Pandemic: Digipay CuES 2023

Hansa Research’s 2023 DigiPay CuES Survey, reveals ‘Easy to Use’ and ‘Instant Payment’ as the key benefits consumers cite for using Mobile Payment Apps, propelling growth for payment platforms.

Cash which has been the world’s foundation for centuries, is leaning towards redundancy, with more than half (58%) of the consumers surveyed stating a reduction in their cash spend, especially among the older demographic (35+ years and above). As per the survey, “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) financing is also moving further into the mainstream for the Indian consumer, with close to 1 in 3 (31%) claiming having used Buy Now Pay Later facility in the last 1 year.
There is substantial gain in popularity and experience with mobile payment apps coming from customers in non-metros (like Pune, Chandigarh, Bhopal, Indore etc.) older demographic (>35yrs) as well as customers from lower socio-economic classes.
The top 3 digital transactions by consumers on the payment app include:

1. 75% made bill payments like mobile & utilities e.g., Electricity, Gas, etc.
2. 57% used it for transferring money or receiving money from friends/family
3. 51% used it for Online shopping

Recommendation levels of consumers jumped from 34 to 46 (NPS) for the Payment Apps category over a period of a year. Improved perceptions of Trust and safety are definitely a contributor to this increasing popularity. A resounding 88% of the users surveyed in the study feel that Mobile Payment Apps /UPI Apps have improved on ‘Safety features’. Infact, ICICI Bank’s iMobile among its consumers was highlighted as the #1 for its security features.
With customers sporting multiple payment apps on their phones at a time, there is tough competition among brands.
The top factors of preference among payment apps for consumers are:

• Trust & Security
• Offers/Rewards
• Range of Services
• Speed and Smooth transactions
• Transaction limits
• Ease of Use
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Piyali Chatterjee, National Head – Customer Experience (CX), Hansa Research, commented, “Our benchmark research aims to help brands identify adjustments that could have the biggest effects on enhancing service quality. Despite an improvement at an Industry level, a 20+ point spread persists between the highest and lowest Net Promoter Score. These disparities are a reflection of the varied user experiences across payment apps. In order to gain favour among consumers, brands need to focus on creating value through more services, offers and providing a versatile platform.”
While consumer awareness was highest for payment platforms like Paytm, Google Pay and PhonePe, Axis Mobile App takes the number one rank on Net Promoter Score (NPS) at 59, followed by ICICI Bank’s iMobile Pay, followed by BHIM.
Another factor in favour of bank payment apps like the Axis Mobile App, ICICI Bank’s iMobile Pay over UPI apps was customer experience, especially on customer support and range of services & features available.
Among non-bank payment apps, CRED takes the number one differentiated position in providing better offers, cashback, and reward points and also is seen as one of the most innovative platforms.
DigiPay CuES (Customer Experience Score) 2023, a syndicated study of Hansa Research, ranks Mobile payment platforms based on their Net Promoter Score (NPS). NPS is an outcome of brand perceptions as well as customer experience based on interactions with the brand and is frequently regarded as a predictive metric for business growth.
Methodology

The DigiPay CuES survey draws insights from more than 3000+ survey responses from Mobile Payment Apps users measuring 12 brands. Represented across age (18-35yrs: 73% and >35yrs 27%), 20 cities, and Gender (M-70%, F-30%). The proprietary survey results are based on consumers’ opinions of the experiences with the brands in the survey. Our report provides insights into the current and future digital payments landscape and the key factors that are influencing customer loyalty for a digital payments brand in India.

Brands part of the study

1. Amazon Pay
2. Axis Mobile
3. BHIM
4. CRED
5. Google Pay
6. iMobile Pay (ICICI Bank)
7. MobiKwik
8. Paytm
9. PayZapp (HDFC Bank)
10. PhonePe
11. Whatsapp Payments
12. YONO (SBI)