As of September 2023, Rakuten Bank's deposits amounted to around 9.6 trillion Japanese yen. This made Rakuten Bank the largest bank by deposits in the category of new form of banks in Japan's banking industry. This category includes direct banks without physical branches and banks affiliated to large retail groups that mainly offer their services online and operate a large network of ATMs in their stores.

In 2023, UK-based digital banks led Europe's digital banking sector. The region's five largest digital banks by total assets were all headquartered in the UK. Revolut topped the list with assets exceeding 20 billion euros, followed by Wise and Starling Bank, each holding more than 17 billion euros in assets.

The use of online and mobile banking is expected to increase steadily between 2021 and 2024, with the Asian market being the largest. In 2020, Far East and China accounted for over 805 million active online banking users. This figure is predicted to reach nearly one billion by 2024. Although Asia was the largest market for online banking in 2020, the countries with the largest online banking penetration rate were all European. South Korea ranked sixth, with a penetration rate of 74 percent. What are the benefits of online banking? Online banking comes with many advantages. On the one hand, it provides customers with an easy and fast way to conduct banking operations, allowing them to avoid visiting banks’ physical branches. Moreover, as more and more customers conduct their banking operations remotely, banks can decrease the number of physical branches and reduce maintenance costs. Over the last ten years, the number of branches of FDIC-insured commercial banks in the United States decreased by more than 10,400. Among the most demanded features of mobile banking, U.S. mobile banking users perceived the possibility of detecting breaches in one's Social Security number as the most valuable one. Digital-only banks Digital-only banks, also known as challengers or neobanks, are recently-established banks that have no physical branches and provide banking facilities only through digital platforms. These banks leverage their low maintenance costs and streamlined operations to challenge the large incumbents that dominate the banking sector. The market size of digital-only banks worldwide stood at roughly 47.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, and it is predicted to soar to 2.05 trillion U.S. dollars by 2030. As of 2021, the Brazilian Nubank ranked first among the most valuable independent digital-only banks worldwide, followed by the U.K.-based Revolut and the San Francisco-headquartered Chime.

Digital banking adoption has reached remarkable levels across Europe, with the Nordic region leading this transformation in 2024. Denmark stands at the forefront with an extraordinary 97.76 percent of its population using online banking services. Norway follows closely with 96.8 percent of its citizens managing their finances digitally, while the Netherlands rounds out the top three at 96.35 percent. These impressive figures highlight how thoroughly Northern European countries have embraced digital financial services, supported by robust technological infrastructure and a population comfortable with digital solutions. The widespread adoption reflects broader regional trends toward digital innovation and the ongoing shift away from cash transactions, as consumers increasingly prefer the convenience and efficiency of online banking. Digital banks on the rise The emergence of digital banks has marked a significant shift in the banking landscape, with these institutions rapidly gaining momentum worldwide. Some of the largest digital banks in the world now boast over 100 million users, showcasing the widespread adoption of digital banking services. Particularly in Europe, leading digital banks like Revolut have experienced exponential growth in recent years, rapidly expanding their customer bases. The UK-based neobank has been on a trajectory of rapid expansion, reaching 50 million users in November 2024. Attitude toward digital banks in the U.S. Opinions on digital banks in the U.S. vary widely within the banking industry, with a growing number of bank executives viewing them as a significant threat to traditional banking models. The rapid rise of digital banks has prompted concerns about market disruption and competition, as these agile fintech players offer innovative solutions and attract a sizable customer base. In the U.S., awareness, popularity, and usage of leading neobanking and neobrokerage apps have steadily increased, underscoring the shifting preferences of consumers towards digital financial services. As digital banks continue to gain traction and reshape the industry landscape, traditional financial institutions are facing pressure to adapt and innovate to remain competitive in the evolving market.

This statistic shows the top French direct bank platforms in 2017 ranked by their net profit, calculated in million euros. A direct bank (sometimes called a branchless bank or an internet-only bank) is a bank without any branch network that offers its services remotely via online banking and phone banking, and also provide ATM transactions access. In 2017, Fortuneo made the highest net profit with more than 9 million euros.

In the third quarter of 2023, Kakao Bank had approximately 45.7 trillion South Korean won in deposits, while Toss Bank had about 22.7 trillion won. The introduction of internet-only banks has significantly influenced South Korea's development towards digital banking. K Bank and Kakao Bank were established in 2017, and Toss Bank was launched in 2021.

In October 2021, more than 934 companies in Japan identified Rakuten Bank as their main online bank. The Japan Net Bank, which was renamed PayPay Bank in April 2021, ranked second, with close to 750 businesses that perceived the bank as their main bank.

Leading direct banks in Japan

Direct banks offer online-only banking services without operating any physical branches. Rakuten Bank, which is part of the e-commerce group Rakuten Group, was one of the leading direct banks in Japan with more than 10 million bank accounts in 2021, followed by PayPay Bank and SBI Sumishin Net Bank with five and four million bank accounts respectively. Partly due to a shift towards digital banking services following the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), direct banks like PayPay Bank recorded a steep increase in the number of bank accounts and transactions conducted by customers in fiscal year 2020.

Customer demographics of direct banks

According to a survey, the share of men who conduct financial transactions online was, on average, higher than that of women. This trend is also reflected in the customer demographics of direct banks. Looking at the customers of the three direct banks mentioned above, men accounted for 60 to 70 percent of customers in all cases. Broken down by age group, customers aged between 40 to 49 years made up the largest proportion of customers.

Neobanking has taken the financial world by storm, with the United States leading the charge. In 2023, the U.S. boasted an estimated 52 million neobanking users, narrowly edging out Brazil's 48.94 million. This digital banking revolution has spread globally, with countries like Russia, the United Kingdom, and India also seeing significant user adoption. The stark contrast between the top two countries and the rest of the world highlights the rapid growth and acceptance of neobanking in certain markets. Pandemic-driven acceleration The COVID-19 pandemic acted as a catalyst for digital banking adoption. In April 2020, 30 percent of customers worldwide reported increased use of mobile banking apps compared to the previous year. While only 19 percent expected to maintain this higher usage post-pandemic, the trend has clearly shifted towards digital banking solutions. This surge in adoption aligns with the growing number of neobanking users observed across various countries, indicating a lasting change in consumer banking habits. Leading neobanks and customer base WeBank, a Chinese neobank, stands out as the leading neobank in terms of users, with an impressive 362 million customers reported at the end of 2022. Other major players include Rakuten with 136.3 million customers and Nubank with 90 million users. In Europe, Revolut was the neobank with the widest customer base, with 35 million customers at the end of 2023. The rapid growth of these digital banks is further evidenced by Revolut's recent milestone of reaching 40 million customers in March 2024, with forecasts predicting this number will grow to nearly 50 million by the end of 2024, highlighting the increasing consumer preference for digital banking solutions.

Active internet banking users for PKO BP i Inteligo reached approximately 5.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2021, 4.5 percent more than in the previous year.

In 2024, South Korea had the highest mobile banking penetration among the observed countries. According to Statista's Consumer Insights, 80 percent of the respondents processed banking matters via smartphone or tablet in South Korea. In terms of online banking, however, the Netherlands and Switzerland had the highest penetration rates, with 57 percent of the respondents using either a PC or laptop to process banking matters. Online banking penetration was generally high in European countries such as Switzerland, Poland, the Netherlands, or France, while mobile banking penetration was higher in Asia (South Korea, India) and Latin America (Brazil, Mexico).

In the fiscal year ending March 2024, Wise emerged as Europe's most profitable digital bank with a net profit of 415 million euros. Close behind was Revolut, recording just under 400 million euros in net profit for 2023. Starling Bank secured the third position with a net profit of 257.51 million euros in its fiscal year ending March 2024.

Grupo Santander ranked as the third bank with the largest number of digital bank users in Spain as it had 5.4 million internet users who accessed its online banking services as of June 2020. Together, the five leading entities had over 27 million digital bank users.

The online banking penetration rate in Japan was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 10.7 percentage points. After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the online banking penetration is estimated to reach 58.96 percent and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the online banking penetration rate of was continuously increasing over the past years.Shown is the estimated percentage of the total population in a given region or country, which makes use of online banking.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the online banking penetration rate in countries like South Korea and China.

Online banking usage in the UK increased steadily between 2007 and 2022. In 2007, around one third of the British population used online banking, which increased up to over 90 percent as of 2022. Banking and financial services are typically among the first industries to embrace technological advances; starting as far back in time as the appearance of automated teller machines (ATMs) and credit cards. Ever since the first secure Internet systems for financial operations became available on a large scale, accessing of one's bank account online to carry out transactions, pay off credit cards, establish credit lines or invest savings became one of the fastest growing areas of Internet activities. Leading online banks in the UK There are several online banks headquartered the UK, including Revolut, Monzo, Starling, Monese, and Atom Bank. As of 2022, Monzo was the most well-known, popular, and used online bank, followed by Starling and Revolut. Established in 2015, Monzo is one of a growing number of disruptor or challenger banks which run accounts online through mobile apps. As of 2023, Monzo customers were concentrated in the UK, as 82 percent of all downloads of the banking app originated from there. Online banking in Europe Across Europe, online banking penetration varied greatly by country. Nordic countries including Norway, Icelad, Finland, and Denmark all had online banking penetration rates of over 90 percent. In stark contrast, Albania, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina had penetration rates lower than 15 percent.

In 2023, among the largest banks headquartered in the United Kingdom that reported official numbers of digital or mobile app users, HSBC had the largest digitally active customer base, with 34.86 million. Lloyds Banking Group followed, with a digitally active customer base of 21.5 million, of which 18.7 million were active app users.

As of September 2024, the Brazilian Nubank and UK-based Revolut shared the top position as the most valuable digital banks worldwide. Both fintech giants boasted a valuation of 45 billion U.S. dollars each. Following closely in second place was WeBank, a Chinese digital bank, with a valuation of 32.4 billion U.S. dollars.

Asia led the global digital banking landscape with approximately 100 neobanks as of December 2023, followed by Europe with 70 and North America with 50. These digital-only banks - also known as challenger banks or neobanks - have seen dramatic growth in both numbers and customer base, with the largest players now serving over 100 million customers.

Virtual banks have emerged as transformative forces in Hong Kong in recent years, reshaping the delivery and experience of banking services. Among the seven virtual banks operating in Hong Kong, Ant Bank, backed by Alibaba group, achieved the highest online visibility between November 14, 2024 and February 11, 2025, with 2,183 online posts and comments. MOX Bank from Standard Chartered ranked the second.

Online banking penetration in Ireland almost doubled in the last decade. In 2024, the penetration rate exceeded 86 percent, up from 48.11 percent in 2014. In Europe, online banking penetration is relatively high, with Scandinavian countries such as Norway and Denmark having the highest penetration rate.

As of 2024, the largest share of individuals using online banking services in France were between 25 and 34 years old. Over 80 percent of French people in this age group used online baking services that year, followed by 78.75 percent of French people between the ages of 35 and 44 years. The lowest share of French individuals making use of online banking services were those between the ages of 65 and 74 years, at around 56 percent.