S. Korea's Internet banking use up 7.9 pct in Q3

SEOUL, Oct. 29 (Yonhap) -- Use of Internet banking in South Korea expanded 7.9
percent in the third quarter from three months earlier as more clients went
online for financial transactions, the central bank said Thursday.
The number of online banking deals reached an average of 29.03 million per day in
the July-September period, compared with 26.9 million in the previous three
months, the Bank of Korea said in a report.
The amount of Internet transactions also surged 6.5 percent during the
three-month period to reach an average of 30.17 trillion won (US$25.1 billion)
per day, according to the central bank. The daily average exceeded the 30
trillion-won level for the first time during the third quarter, the bank added.
As of the end of September, 57.3 million individuals and companies held
online-banking accounts with 17 local lenders, the state-run Korea Post and HSBC
Holding Plc, up 3.1 percent from three month earlier, it said.
Internet banking deals represented 36.2 percent of the nation's total financial
transactions in the third quarter while 38 percent were carried out through cash
dispensers and automatic teller machines.
Nearly nine out of 10 households in South Korea have access to cheap broadband
Internet. The nation's computer usage is among the highest in the world.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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