Daily use of cashier's checks in S. Korea falls to record low in 2016

SEOUL, Feb. 18 (Yonhap) -- The average daily use of a 100,000 won (US$86) bank check in South Korea fell to a record low last year due to increased usage of credit and mobile cards and the highest denomination of currency, central bank data showed Saturday.

The average settlement of such cashier's checks per day is valued at 56.2 billion won in 2016, down from 73 billion won a year earlier, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The daily use of such bank checks has been on the decline since peaking in 2007 when average daily settlement of such cashier's checks was valued at 400 billion won.

The decline came as more people prefer credit and mobile cards as a major settlement tool for convenience and they began to use the 50,000 won bill, the highest denomination in South Korea.

Last year, the BOK issued 23 trillion won worth of 50,000 won bills in the largest amount since 2009 when South Korea began to print the note.

Outstanding 50,000 won bills accounted for the lion's share with 75.8 trillion won as of the end of December, up 11.5 trillion won from a year earlier.

entropy@yna.co.kr
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