Worldpay 'Global Payments Report 2026'

Understanding local payment culture key to competitiveness

Approval rates a variable in cross-border payments via domestic PGs

Reverse-purchase exports up 40% year-on-year as K-culture spreads

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As digital wallets and country-specific local payment methods gain influence in the global payments market and new options continue to emerge, South Korean payment companies are finding their overseas strategies increasingly complex. The ability to combine payment methods tailored to target markets, customer segments and product price points — and to maximize transaction approval rates — is expected to matter more than simply expanding the number of payment options on offer.

According to Worldpay's Global Payments Report 2026, digital wallets accounted for 56 percent of global online payment value last year. Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) made up 4 percent, while direct payments via crypto and stablecoins stood at 0.19 percent.

Kim Seon-jin, a senior manager at Hecto Financial, said companies must understand local payment cultures and fill in missing payment methods to improve approval rates, conversion rates and ultimately sales. "If you look at overseas payment markets only through a Korean lens, a kind of 'Galapagos problem' can emerge," he said.

Payment habits vary sharply by region. Digital wallets and QR-code or real-time account transfer-based payments dominate in China and Southeast Asia, while Japan — despite a strong preference for cash offline — sees high credit card usage online. Differences are equally pronounced within Europe, with digital wallets firmly established as the primary payment method in Belgium, Denmark, Finland and Germany, among others.

Local payment methods are also crossing borders at a notable pace. In Brazil, Pix — the central bank's real-time account transfer system — accounted for 42 percent of online payment value last year, surpassing credit cards at 40 percent. For higher-priced products, offering installment-based options such as BNPL has also been shown to improve purchase conversion rates.

The challenge for South Korean companies is that plugging into global payment networks is not straightforward. While US and Chinese companies can use global payment gateway (PG) networks to reach consumers across multiple countries, some global PGs lack the financial licenses or card network access required to operate in South Korea, preventing them from contracting directly with Korean entities.

South Korean companies can build cross-border payment services through domestic PGs, but even then, transaction approval rates remain a key variable. Payments can be declined even when there is no issue with a card's limit or balance. The approval rate refers to the share of payment attempts that are successfully completed.

"If the approval rate is 60 percent, that means 40 out of every 100 customers who intend to make a purchase fail to complete payment for reasons the company cannot directly control," Kim said. "Even if you spend on marketing to bring customers all the way to the checkout stage, losing them at the final step represents a significant opportunity cost."

Exchange rates and local currency support also matter. Presenting product prices to overseas consumers in US dollars only can result in additional costs when they convert to their home currency. If consumers feel the price has come out higher than expected, they may abandon the transaction — or the situation may escalate into a dispute.

Demand patterns for cross-border payments among South Korean companies have also shifted in the past year or two. While gaming companies were once the primary drivers of overseas payment demand, the growing global reach of K-pop, K-dramas and Korean culture more broadly has raised overseas consumer interest in Korean products.

A rise in foreign visitors to South Korea has also fueled demand from travelers wanting to use Korean online food delivery and e-commerce services just as locals do. As a result, demand for cross-border payment services is spreading from digital goods such as games and tickets into e-commerce and IT platforms. Hecto Financial said reverse-purchase exports — overseas consumers buying directly from South Korean online stores — rose about 40 percent year-on-year.


kyoung@heraldcorp.com