What to expect from the e-payment sector in this new digital age

By: Cesilia Faustina

Throughout the years, the global payment sector has experienced somewhat of stability until the start of 2020 when COVID-19 struct. The changes brought by the pandemic had huge impacts on the payment industry. A McKinsey report saw the global payment industry receding by 22 percent within the first six months in 2020, in comparison with 2019. It also predicted a loss of $140 billion in 2020. The year 2020 did have a big impact on the payment sector, many businesses have slowed down or even shut down completely. This has caused a shift and greater dependency for digital means. E-payment became a huge contributor to the global payment industry and coming into 2021, people are still depending on it. E-payment is producing more investors and innovators to push the sector forward.

How the digital economy is fueling the wellness industry

By: Cesilia Faustina

The health and wellness sector are multi-billion dollar industries. The concept of health and wanting to have a healthy life has always existed since ancient times, however, it really gained momentum in the 1950s-1970s thanks to the influence of a network of well-known physicians and thinkers in the US. The wellness industry today has a much more different concept. What was once a top-down approach to health, where health information would be distributed from dominant thinkers and prestigious institutions, has turned into a participatory approach. The public can now easily receive information about health through various sources and distributors, something made especially apparent with the rise of the digital economy.

Digital apps are helping to mitigate insurance risks

By: Cesilia Faustina

The popularity of e-commerce is a growing phenomenon, it is one that has been fuelled with the rise of COVID-19. Many businesses are forced to move into the digital sphere in order to maintain their income. This trend has now led to the dependency of insurance companies towards digital platforms. (Re)insurers are looking at the rise of digital wallets and e-commerce platforms to help them mitigate their losses and close protection gaps.

Usage of digital platforms is especially becoming a big deal with emerging markets, such as countries like India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. According to a survey by Swiss Re Institute, 70 percent of respondents expressed interest in using online channels to purchase insurance. The survey had also showed that 68 percent of the 1,800 respondents in these three countries were using digital platforms at least once a week. COVID-19 has pushed government policies to support an online environment in order to create a safer process for consumers.