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Female internet users contribute to rapid adoption of e-money in Indonesia
The internet economy is rapidly growing in Indonesia amid an increase in the use of digital payments across Southeast Asia’s largest economy.
According to Google Indonesia’s “2019 Year in Search Indonesia: Insights for Brands” report, the rapid growth in the country’s e-money adoption has been greatly affected by five major country trends, which include e-money adaptation, non-metros growth, TV viewing going online, sophisticated consumers and sustainability.
The report was released on Nov. 20 during the fourth Google4ID exhibition, which was held in Jakarta on Nov. 20.
Across Indonesia, there has been a surge of interest in digital wallets on Google Search, with the keywords “digital wallets” and “best digital wallets” being searched 2.7 times more than the previous year.
Furthermore, Indonesian women are rapidly adapting to e-money, with 86 percent of all internet-connected women using digital payment services, which is much higher than just 32 percent in 2017, according to the report.
In addition, the report also finds that the city with the highest frequency of searches relating to digital wallets this year is Yogyakarta.
The report also include non-metros growth, concluding that the growth of online users outside the Greater Jakarta area (Jabodetabek) will be twice as high as the growth of users inside the capital and its surrounding satellite cities.
The Gross Market Value (GMV) per capita of the metros (people living in Greater Jakarta) is US$555 while for non-metros it is $103 on average. However, the GMV of non-metros is expected to grow four times by 2025, according to the report. In comparison, the GMV of metros is predicted to grow only 2 times.
Furthermore, the keywords “Beauty”, “Auto” and “Travel” were the most frequent searches in non-metro areas. According to the report, there has been an 82 percent rise in Google searches related to “Auto”, an 80 percent rise in searches on beauty and personal care, and a 90 percent jump in “flights to” queries by non-metros. The report concludes that metros seek greater convenience and higher value for their digital and offline experience, while non-metros seek products and services that were previously unavailable to them.
In terms of sustainability, Google discovered that Indonesians are becoming more aware or their impact on the environment. Furthermore, Google Search recorded a 3.9 times growth in searches for “air quality”, with the most searches per capita coming from West Kalimantan , Riau and Jakarta.
In addition, there was a threefold increase in “stainless straws” searches, a 6.3 times increase in searches for “recyclable bags” and a 2.7 times increase in “electric cars” searches, particularly in Jakarta and North Sumatra.
The report also touched upon the internet economy in Southeast Asia, saying Indonesia was the “rocket that is taking off faster, pulling away from the rest of the pack and bolting ahead.”
According to Google, Temasek, Bain & Company e-Conomy SEA 2019 Report, Indonesia’s internet economy is currently valued at around $40 billion this year, and it is expects to grow over three times to $130 billion by 2025. Furthermore, with almost all online sectors rapidly growing, the report also predicted the growth of four important pacesetters of the internet economy.
The report predicts that the value of the e-commerce industry will grow from $20.9 billion in 2019 to $82 billion by 2025 and the value of the ride-hailing industry to spike from $5.7 billion in 2019 to $18 billion by 2025.
On the other hand, the value of the online media industry is estimated to increase from $3.5 billion this year to $9 billion by 2025 and the online travel industry is expected to grow from $10.2 billion to $25 billion in 2025. (bry)
Source: https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2019/11/28/female-internet-users-contribute-to-rapid-adoption-of-e-money-in-indonesia.html