Revolut study conducted by Reveal Marketing Research: 6 out of 10 Millennials in Romania use fintech apps

Revolut in collaboration with Reveal Marketing Research conducted a study to find out to what extent financial apps and digital money management solutions help Romanians maintain control over their money.

• Digital financial products are increasingly appealing as they simplify daily life and 1 in 3 respondents declare that they will be interested in acquisition of savings accounts and credit cards through a digital platform in the next year.
• 62% of respondents use apps for money management often during a week, while 35% of the population believe that these are useful to improve their financial situation and to a greater extent fintech users (43%) versus non-users (28%).
• 6 out of 10 Romanians use fintech solutions because these are cheaper (58%) and faster (57%) than traditional services, while they provide reliability and safety (37%).

Fintech awareness and adoption is rapidly increasing among Romanians

Although fintech is a relatively young financial sector, the latest survey commissioned by Revolut and conducted by Reveal Marketing Research found that 78% of Romanians have heard of fintech solutionsand 47% currently use them.

If we take a closer look at the results, we notice that level of consciousness about fintech solutions among men, those aged 25 to 44and with higher education our higher than for the rest of the sample. When it comes to usage behaviorMillennials – under the age of 35 – use fintech digital wallets to a significantly higher extent (56%).

When it comes to brands, Revolut is the fintech app with the widest and most loyal community in Romania, with almost 80% of fintech users are Revolut customers, and almost half of them have used the app for at least 1 year (48%).

Digital financial products as solutions that maintain a balanced life in an unpredictable world

In a context characterized by a lack of predictability, Romanians are more responsible when it comes to managing their private finances. 33% of respondents thus plan to acquire savings accounts through a digital platform in the next year to add extra comfort to everyday life. Due to transparency, speed and easy access to the money anytime, anywhere, the savings products are by far the number one in all age categories when it comes to planning financial products to be added to fintech solutions already in place. Especially women (34%) intend to use fintech for savings and Millennials (25-34 years, with 37%).

On the other hand, another third of the population intends to maintain and update the desired lifestyle by choose a credit card through a digital platform in the next year (27%) or for one personal loan (20%). The highest interest rate on offers for personal loans is noticed among 45-55 year old fintech users (23%).

When it comes to young Romanians aged 18-24, investing in cryptocurrency (28%) or stock market (17%) to protect and/or multiply money is becoming an increasingly attractive perspective compared to the total sample (16% and 12% respectively).

Security-related products such as health insurance, life insurance and private pensions are less attractive to GenZers (under 24). Interest in these categories increases with age, peaking in the 45-55 age group, a normal trend that was not dramatically changed by the pandemics or inflation. In the over-55 group, interest is declining, especially for pension insurance, as they probably realize that it is probably too late for them to start saving in such a product. Instead, credit cards are one of the products this category intends to add to its financial tool portfolio in the future (27%).

Interest in cryptocurrencies is highest in the group under 24 years of age. Men tend to be between 50%-100% more interested than women in risky assets like crypto and trading. The gap increases with the increase in risk, with the largest gap in cryptocurrencies (22% of all male respondents are interested in crypto versus 12% of females).

The growing interest of younger generations in cryptocurrencies is also highlighted by Revolut data (anonymized and aggregated). As of the end of July 2021, the number of users interested in crypto, in the 18-24 segment, increased by 78% compared to the end of July 2021. In terms of growth, their category was followed by their “parents” generation, 45- 54 years with +57%, in the same period. The trend has also been supported by crypto literacy initiatives such as “Learn and Earn”, a series of courses specifically included in the Revolut app to enrich the knowledge of customers about cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. And the courses will continue.

Regular use of money management apps is the new “normal” way of doing things in today’s society

62% of the respondents use apps for money management (internet banking/mobile banking apps) often during a week while 35% of the population believes that these are very useful to improve their financial situation. Both of the previous statements were visible to a greater extent in the case fintech users vs. non-usersrecords differences of more than 15% between the segments.

The investigation revealed a age pattern in Romanians behavior and perception regarding how they relate to digital solutions for managing finances. Thus, while frequency of use is higher for those younger than 45 (66%), those over 45 believe to a greater extent that these are very useful to improve their financial situation (39%).

Why fintech?

The main motivations which explains the increasing use of fintech is closely linked to cost-effective and seamless experience it provides to its customers. Thus fintech services are evaluated as cheaper (58%) and faster (57%) than traditional banking, while giving reliability and safety (37%).

As for the reasons why they choose to use fintech solutions instead of traditional banking, the data shows it men tend to be more cost-orientedwhile women prioritize more time efficiency. It can also be observed that for those over 55 years of age reliability and safety offered by these solutions is important to a significantly higher degree.