Naver Pay tops Korean mobile payment market on rewards

Naver Pay, the mobile payment service operated by Korean portal operator Naver, was the country's most widely used platform, driven by its rewards and promotional benefits, industry data showed Sunday.

According to a report by market researcher Open Survey, 64.7 percent of consumers who had used a mobile payment service within the past month said they used Naver Pay, making it the most popular platform.

Kakao Pay ranked second with 49.8 percent, followed by Toss Pay at 31.1 percent.

Respondents cited reward points and discount benefits as the main reasons for choosing Naver Pay.

In the mobile money transfer segment, Kakao Pay was the most widely used platform, with a 45.2 percent share.

Toss Pay came next with 32.6 percent, well ahead of Naver Pay's 22.3 percent.

Nearly four in 10 users said they chose Kakao Pay because it was the payment service used by the recipient, underscoring the importance of network effects in peer-to-peer money transfers.

Yonhap