The Evolution of the Online Platform Economy: Evidence from Five Years of Banking Data

Abstract

Measuring the gig economy has been challenging. Drawing on anonymized administrative banking data, we measure supply-side participation in the online platform economy between 2013 and 2018. We find 2.3 million account holders who received payments from 128 transportation, non-transport work, selling, and leasing platforms. Participation grew rapidly, particularly in the transportation sector. Average monthly revenues declined among drivers and increased among lessors even within metro areas. At least a third--and likely more--of the decline in transportation revenues is driven by decreases in hours worked. These findings raise important policy questions and motivate promising directions for future work.