Mega MGC Coffee nearly matched Starbucks in South Korea's café brand payment volume in July, reaching an estimated 94.9% of Starbucks' level versus 69.5% a year earlier, according to WiseApp·Retail's sample survey of credit and debit card transactions. Starbucks remained No. 1 in payment volume and led app usage with 7.14 million monthly users. Its app user count rebounded after falling 15.0% in June amid the Tank Day controversy, but remained 5.4% below May and 6.8% below July of last year. Mega MGC Coffee ranked second in app users with a record 3 million, followed by Compose Coffee and A Twosome Heart. The data underscore intensifying competition from low-price coffee chains, although the payment estimates exclude cash, bank transfers and transactions through partner companies.