75% of Consumers Who Use Online Bank Transfers Worry About Fraud

As online bank transfers grow in popularity, consumer understanding of the service has a growth curve of its own, and security is among the key areas where customers need reassurance and acknowledgment of the issues around using bank transfers as a payment method.

As analyzed in the study “New Payment Options: Building Stronger Customer Ties With Pay By Bank Transfer,” a PYMNTS and Nuvei collaboration, consumers are both curious and concerned about the security of online bank transfers as a payment method, partly because it’s not well understood.

Data shows that 36% of consumers who have not used online bank transfers in the past year have security concerns, and even for those who have, 34% still worry about using their bank account as a base for transfers particularly.

“For example, 73% of consumers concerned about security issues with online bank transfers in the abstract cite the risk of fraud as an issue that concerns them, but 75% of consumers who used online bank transfers in their most recent in-person payment say the risk of fraud also concerns them,” per the study.

As for the breakdowns of specific demographics and concerns, consumers across age groups are most concerned about using bank account transfers for recurring bill payments (42.1%), eCommerce purchases (39.4%) and a mix of both of those (31.7%).

Even so, consumers are interested in the speed that bank transfers provide, as is seen in findings on user interest. Close to 42% of all consumers surveyed are very or extremely interested in using bank transfers as a form of payment.

Demographically, older bridge millennials show the most apprehension about this payment method at 41.6%, with younger millennials right behind at 40.7%.

The younger the consumer, the less concerned they are with bank transfer security, as we found that just 22.7% of Gen Z consumers share these security concerns, and averaged across the entire survey sample the number is 35%.

As consumers become more familiar with this method those numbers are likely to fall as the study states that “Consumers who try it are far more likely to want to use it again. In total, 44% of consumers who previously paid using an online bank transfer are highly interested in using it again. For banks promoting online bank transfers, this means that the initial push toward adoption is key.”

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