Summary of Q1 2023: over 370m BLIK transactions totalling PLN 50.1bn
BLIK consistently strengthens its position in the payments market – the evidence comes from its results in Q1 2023. From January to March this year, the users of BLIK made 374m payments of the total value of PLN 50.1bn. This means that the number of transactions made since the system started has already exceeded 3bn. At the end of Q1 2023, BLIK was actively used by more than 13.5m people. In the analysed period, there was a dynamic increase in the number of payments at POS terminals and BLIK phone transfers: the growth was 94% and 88%, respectively, year-on-year.
Getting closer to 400m transactions in one quarter
The results achieved by BLIK in Q1 2023 emphasise its strong position in the payments sector in Poland. This is reflected in the ever-growing popularity and trust of its users. In the analysed period, customers of banking apps made 50% more BLIK transactions compared to the previous year – both in terms of the volume and the value. In the first quarter of the year, the average daily BLIK payments volume was 4.2m – it is 55% more than in the equivalent period in 2022. On the best day, nearly 6m transactions were recorded with the average amount of PLN 134.
The beginning of the year was extremely dynamic for us. During that time, we expanded our cooperation with public institutions. This resulted in the implementation of BLIK in the e-Tax Office. At the same time, we continued to develop our services at banks: let me mention Bank Millennium, which provided its customers with a convenient option of BLIK payment request. We continue to develop intensively: this is proven by a steady increase in the volume and value of transactions. We have significantly increased our share in the retail payments market in Poland: up to 29 percent. This, in turn, was reflected in the decision of the National Bank of Poland, which classified BLIK in the category of 'significant retail payment systems'
- says Dariusz Mazurkiewicz, CEO at BLIK Polish Payment Standard.
Poles eager to pay with BLIK in e-commerce
Q1 2023 witnesses the highest number of BLIK transactions in in e-commerce. Currently, every second BLIK transaction is carried out online. Between January and March this year, BLIK users made nearly 207m online payments – it is 32% more than a year earlier. The value of online transactions reached PLN 26.9bn compared to PLN 18.8bn a year earlier. The average amount of a single online purchase in Q1 2023 was PLN 130.
The numbers are clear: BLIK is currently the most popular payment method in e-commerce. BLIK has already outclassed payment cards for good. Currently, the share of transactions carried out using this channel is almost reaching up to 70 percent. Users choose BLIK because it is convenient, fast, and, most importantly, available from any place and at any time. This guarantees a unique shopping experience. Please note that when it comes to consumer decisions, the first quarter did not bring any major changes compared to last year. Poles are still keen to pay with BLIK on marketplace platforms: between January and March the average shopping basket amounted to PLN 117.50. At the same time, in volume terms, betting and paying the bills also grew in the last three months: by 50 and 43 per cent year-on-year, respectively.
- says Monika Król, Vice President of the Board, BLIK – Polish Payment Standard.
Dynamic growth in the volume of BLIK phone transfers
The number of BLIK phone transfers has also been growing noticeably for several quarters. Between January and March this year, as many as 82.9m such transactions were made – it is 88% more than a year earlier. P2P payments now account for more than a fifth of all BLIK operations. Their value in Q1 2023 was PLN 10.8bn – this is an increase of 112% over the previous year. The average amount of a BLIK phone transfer is PLN 137.00. In the corresponding period of 2022 it was PLN 124.00.
Twice as many BLIK transactions at POS
Between January and March this year, transactions at traditional payment terminals were extremely popular among BLIK users. In this period Poles paid 71.2 million times this way. The share of BLIK contactless payments was 35% (in volume terms it was almost 25m). This is an increase of approx. 290% year-on-year. Since the launch of BLIK contactless payments, nearly two million users have activated them and used them for payments in 128 countries around the world.
A systematic increase in the number of transactions is also recorded at ATMs. At the end of March 2023, bank customers carried out 13.2m BLIK operations at automatic tellers. The number of deposits and withdrawals increased year-on-year by 30%. Their value reached almost PLN 8.6 bn – it is 28% more than in the same period last year. In Q1 2023, the average amount of transactions at an ATM was PLN 654.00.
More and more active BLIK users
During its eight-year operations BLIK has attracted a significant number of regular loyal users. At the end of March this year, there were already 26.7m mobile apps registered in the system. There were approx. 13.5m individuals who were actively using it. This is an increase of 18% and 28%, respectively, compared to the result achieved a year earlier.
Our efforts to make BLIK popular significantly influence its recognition and attract users from various age groups. We actively run advertising and promotional campaigns. We promote BLIK payments on paywalls of settlement agents. We have launched the BLIKOMANIA annual lottery: it encourages users to get to know BLIK and its advantages, and it also builds the habit of using BLIK regularly
- Monika Król adds.
International expansion
Further development of BLIK will come from introduction of new services, and also from strengthening its well-established presence abroad. In March this year, the company announced the launch of BLIK operations in Romania, the second largest market in Central and Eastern Europe. Having received legal approval for its operations from the National Bank of Romania, the system operator plans to focus on e-commerce payments there.
The strategic development of BLIK is inseparably linked to its international expansion. In recent months we have taken several important steps in this direction. I have no doubt that the solution we offer has a great potential so that it will grow on the European market and reach wider audiences. The recent approval of the National Bank of Slovakia, enabling the acquisition of VIAMO, a Slovak company, brings us closer to this. Today, we keep on working intensively on a solution that will cover the entire euro zone, and the Slovak payment platform will be an important part of this project
- says Dariusz Mazurkiewicz.
BLIK is a popular standard of mobile payments. The BLIK feature in mobile banking apps is now available to literally every customer of domestic payment institutions offering a mobile app. Polski Standard Płatności (PSP) is responsible for the development of the system. PSP is constantly developing BLIK's capabilities so that the system is as functional as possible. The shareholders of the PSP company are Alior Bank, Bank Millennium, Santander Bank Polska, ING Bank Śląski, mBank, PKO Bank Polski, and Mastercard.
For additional information, please contact:
Klaudia Rombalska
BLIK Press Office
E klaudia.rombalska@clearcom.pl
