Largest Ferratum Christmas Barometer™ to date gathers spending habits of over 31.000 consumers globally

TORONTO, Dec. 2, 2019 /CNW/ - When it comes to Christmas time, which are the most common consumer spending habits? Residents of which countries spend most on holidays? What nation tends to buy most clothes and who spends more on a night at a hotel? Who uses mobile banking and what are the New Year's resolutions in 2019?

Ferratum Group, a global provider of mobile financial services, asked customers in 14 countries to analyze their behavior on spending during the holiday season. Over 31.000 households completed the survey and shared their plans for Christmas, spending and their wishes with us.

The survey indicates that 21% of families globally are planning to increase their spending on Christmas holidays compared with the previous year, 38% plan to spend less and 42% will maintain the same level of spending as last year. The survey revealed some surprising differences in terms of holiday spending between countries. This year, Ferratum's International Christmas Barometer ™ shows Brazil to be the forerunner of Christmas spenders with 91% of their monthly income being allocated to the holidays. On the 2^nd place we find Poland with just 36%, followed closely by Australia, Spain and Romania as countries that invest the most money during the Christmas period, about 34% of their monthly income respectively.

Who goes online when it comes to shopping?

UK ranks first among online purchases in 2019 with a rate of 38%, followed by no. 2 and 3 Netherlands (30%) and Sweden (29%), while Estonia, Croatia and Latvia will stick to more traditional shopping.

What's love got to do with it?

When asked what people value most during this time of year, 64% of respondents answered that spending time with family and beloved ones is their wish for this Christmas.

What about New Year's resolutions?

Spending time with beloved ones is again a top answer (23%), followed by home renovation (15%), travelling more (12%) and being more active and having a healthier life (11%).

Clothes, sweets and toys are the name of the game this Christmas

The most frequent expense in the Winter 2019 International Barometer ™ is clothes, taking an average of 13% of the disposable income of a family, followed by sweets (12%) and toys and games (11%). Almost everyone loves fashion, with 12 countries out of 14 spending most money on clothing and shopping in general during Christmas. The only exception is Latvia, where attending sport events is the first choice, and Poland with sweets as number one.

This Christmas, as Canadians spend time connecting with friends and family, it comes as no surprise that households in Canada plan to spend a total of 52% of their holiday spend on those things that bring us warmth and joy – clothes, food, and gifts.

Travel addicts, where are you?

Brazil, the country that spends most on their Christmas holidays, is also at the top of the list of spending on travels, as 31% of respondents say that most of their spending will go to this. Romanians and Australians also like to travel, allocating 25% of their Christmas spending to travelling. When traveling, 71% of respondents in Sweden and 64% in UK and Norway are most likely to utilize card payments over cash transactions.

Mobile banking is the future

All countries except Bulgaria (43%) choose mobile banking over traditional banking (67%), with Sweden and Netherlands as forerunners of the mobile banking trend, with 91% favoring digital banking.

Canadians have also embraced mobile banking services, with 87% of resposndents opting for convenience over facing what can sometimes be harsh winter conditons to get to a bank.

Expensive hotels or Airbnb?

Australians and Canadians will more likely pay over 100 Eur for a night at a hotel, while Romanias and Estonians will rather choose services like Airbnb during holidays or while travelling abroad.

We continue to see Canadians choosing the familiarity of an established hotel, with 81% of hoseholds indicating that they are more likely to opt for a hotel than Airbnb. That said, only 45% of Canadian households (down from 56% last year) are willing to pay in excess of 100 Eur for a night at a hotel – an indicator that Canadians may be a bit more discerning with their disposable income.

How was Ferratum Christmas Barometer 2019 ™ Group conducted?

• The survey was conducted by Ferratum Group who surveyed its active customers in 14 countries globally via web survey with a standardised questionnaire. Incomes are stated in local currency, and relative Christmas consuming is calculated by the ratio of a family's monthly disposable income in each country.
• Over 31.000 households participated in the survey. Respondents were aged from 18 to over 61 years and 60% of participants were women. The average available income of participating households was between €880 – €3836. The average household size among the respondents was 2.9 persons.
• In addition to demographic factors, respondents were asked about their disposable monthly income, how much money will be allocated for Christmas holidays, what the New Year's Resolutions are, if they will travel during Christmas time or if they are goin to use Airbnb services or online banking while travelling abroad.
• The survey used each country's respective currency. Responses were evened out to reflect the respective purchasing power of each country. All survey respondents were anonymous.

About Ferratum Group:

Ferratum Group is an international provider of mobile banking and digital consumer and small business loans, distributed and managed by mobile devices. Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, Ferratum has expanded rapidly to operate in 23 countries across Europe, Africa, South and North America, Australia and Asia.

As a pioneer in digital and mobile financial services technology, Ferratum is at the forefront of the digital banking revolution. Ferratum has approximately 763,000 active customers that have an open Mobile Bank account or an active loan balance in the last 12 months (as at 30 September 2019).

Ferratum Group is listed on the Prime Standard of Frankfurt Stock Exchange under symbol 'FRU.' For more information, visit www.ferratumgroup.com.

SOURCE Ferratum Canada Inc.

Ferratum Group: Emmi Kavander, Head of Group Communications and Investor Relations, T: [phone], E: [email protected]