Hong Kong’s 2022 Consumption Vouchers: Switches in payment platforms & areas of spending

From 7 August, most long-term residents in Hong Kong aged 18+ years will receive their Phase II consumption vouchers from the government, following an earlier, Phase I disbursement in April this year.

Notably, the number of digital payment platforms which eligible residents can receive their HK$ 5000 of e-coupons has increased from four in Phase I – Alipay HK, HKT’s Tap & Go, Octopus Cards, WeChat Pay HK – to six in Phase II – with the addition of BoC Pay and HSBC’s PayMe.

But are many consumers opting to change payment platform in Phase II’s disbursement? Which payment platforms are attracting the most switchovers? And what are consumers planning to spend their Phase II consumption vouchers on?

What proportion of Hong Kong consumers are switching payment platforms in Phase II?

Latest RealTime Omnibus research by YouGov reveals that one in four Hong Kong residents are opting to change their payment platform for receiving their second batch of digital vouchers (25%).

Millennials (born 1981–1996) are more likely than other birth cohorts to be switchers – almost one in three are opting for a change (32%). In contrast, Baby Boomers (born 1946–1964) are least likely: less than one in five are seeking a change (18%).

Which payment platforms are attracting the most switchovers?

Among consumers who are opting to change payment providers in Phase II, almost half of them say they are switching to either Octopus Cards (23%) or Alipay (22%).

Of the two new payment platforms in Phase II, HSBC’s PayMe attracted 15% of switchers, ahead of BoC Pay’s 9%. WeChat Pay, which ran a high-profile omnichannel marketing campaign featuring local actor Michael Tao to encourage consumers to choose its platform, attracted just over one in ten switchers (11%).

Consumers residing in the New Territories made up half of all switchers (50%), and the largest proportion of switchovers into each platform, followed by residents of Kowloon. Consumers residing on Hong Kong Island were least likely to switch payment platforms in Phase II – as a whole and across the six platforms.

Where are consumers planning to spend their consumption vouchers?

More than three in five consumers in Hong Kong say they will spend their consumption vouchers on food-related grocery items (63%), while half intend to expend some of their e-coupons on personal care and cosmetic products (50%) – such as shower gels, shampoos and conditioners, toothpastes, skincare products, and make-up products.

Almost two in five intend to use their consumption vouchers to buy clothing, footwear, bags and fashion accessories (39%), while more than a third are looking to spend them on personal electronics (36%) – including smartphones, computers, and audio and video accessories.

Close to a quarter of consumers also say they will spend their consumption vouchers on home appliances (24%) and COVID-19 protection supplies (23%) – such as face masks and hand sanitisers.

But among Gen Z consumers, personal electronics (47%) and personal care and cosmetics (45%) are the top two categories and close to half say they intend to spend their consumption vouchers here – ahead of food related-groceries (41%) and clothing and fashion apparel (40%).

Food-related grocery items, however, remains the top e-voucher spending category for Millennials (55%), Gen X (68%) and Baby Boomers (77%).

More than half of Millennials (51%), Gen X (50%) and Baby Boomers (51%) also say they will spend on personal care and cosmetic products, while around two in five Millennials (40%), Gen X (38%) and Baby Boomers (38%) intend to buy clothing and fashion apparel with their e-vouchers.

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Methodology: YouGov RealTime Omnibus provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. This study was conducted online from 26 May to 26 July 2022, with an online representative sample of 5,203 adults in Hong Kong (aged 16+ years), using a questionnaire designed by YouGov. Data figures have been weighted by age and gender to be representative of the adult online population in Hong Kong (16 years or older), and reflect the latest Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) population estimates. Learn more about YouGov RealTime Omnibus.