Digital Microfinance and Behavioral Nudges: A Comparative Study of Fisher Communities in Philippines and India

Digital financial inclusion enables the integration of millions of underprivileged individuals into the financial system, making poverty alleviation increasingly achievable. In a developing country like Pakistan, which has a large unbanked population, this presents a significant opportunity for economic empowerment through mobile banking, digital wallets, and fintech innovations. These tools enhance financial participation by improving access to savings, credit, and financial literacy. This research highlights how digital financial inclusion can significantly contribute to poverty alleviation. However, key challenges remain, including limited digital infrastructure, gender disparities, cybersecurity risks, and low trust in digital systems. By examining both policy frameworks and grassroots initiatives, this study offers actionable insights into how these barriers can be addressed. It emphasizes that digital finance, when effectively implemented, can promote sustainable development and help bridge economic disparities in Pakistan’s rapidly evolving digital economy.

This systematic review examines the role of digitization in transforming retail banking, with a specific focus on customer engagement and financial product adoption across South Asia. The study investigates how digital technologies such as mobile banking, digital wallets, biometric identification, and fintech platforms have redefined user experiences and expanded access to financial services in diverse socio-economic and cultural settings. Guided by the PRISMA 2020 methodology, the review synthesizes findings from a total of 84 peer-reviewed and high-quality studies published between 2010 and 2024, encompassing empirical research, conceptual frameworks, and institutional reports. The findings reveal that digital infrastructure development, particularly mobile internet access and national ID integration, has significantly enhanced financial inclusion and enabled large-scale onboarding of previously unbanked populations. Furthermore, personalized user interfaces, behavioral nudges, and AI-driven financial tools have emerged as key drivers of customer engagement, promoting higher adoption of savings, credit, insurance, and investment products. The study also highlights the critical interplay between fintech innovation and regulatory frameworks, which collectively shape the scalability and inclusiveness of digital banking ecosystems. Overall, this review contributes a comprehensive and region-specific understanding of how digitization is influencing customer behavior, financial accessibility, and banking strategies in South Asia, while emphasizing the need for inclusive design, localized policy interventions, and continued cross-sector collaboration to bridge the remaining digital divides.

This paper explores the cashless economy in India, emphasizing technology's role in sustainability and entrepreneurship, highlighting the shift towards electronic payments and innovative opportunities for sustainability and entrepreneurship. cashless economy promotes sustainability by reducing environmental impact, conserving resources, minimizing paper currency usage, aligning with sustainable development principles and encouraging responsible consumption and production patterns. The cashless economy fosters entrepreneurial ventures, innovation, job creation, and economic growth by enabling digital payment solutions, mobile applications, and technology-driven financial services, and cashless economy promotes digital financial inclusion, enabling underprivileged and unbanked populations to participate in the digital financial ecosystem through mobile banking, UPI, and digital wallets, contributing to poverty alleviation and socio-economic development. The cashless economy requires innovative payment solutions and financial technologies, including secure digital platforms, fraud prevention measures, data privacy, and cybersecurity. Entrepreneurs and technology companies drive these advancements, enhancing user experience and strengthening the financial ecosystem. This shift fosters sustainability and entrepreneurship, reducing reliance on physical currency and promoting digital payment solutions. Continuous investment in technological advancements, regulatory frameworks, and digital infrastructure is crucial for a thriving and innovative digital economy in India. KEYWORDS: Sustainability, Innovative opportunities, Environmental impact, Resource conservation, Paper currency usage, Sustainable development principles, Responsible consumption, Technology-driven financial services, Digital financial inclusion, Underprivileged populations, Socio-economic development, Financial technologies, Cybersecurity, Physical currency, Digital infrastructure

Digital wallets are considered as a game changer because they allow digital financial inclusion among various levels of society. However, the use of digital wallet among Malaysians is low compared to other countries. A pre-liminary study was conducted to identify the issue related to digital wallets in rural areas. Besides, a literature review was conducted to determine the factors and barriers that may influence behavioral intention of consumers in Malaysia to adopt digital wallet. Findings from the pre-liminary study were discussed and a conceptual model that consisted of some constructs from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2, and Innovation Resistance Theory and Trust was proposed to examine the drivers and barriers towards the adoption of digital wallet. Expected results from this study would provide insights on the perception on digital wallet among Malaysians in rural and urban areas.

This study examines the impact of traditional and digital financial inclusion on Nigeria’s economic growth using quarterly data (2009- 2023). Financial inclusion is measured by the number of depositors at commercial banks, while digital inclusion is captured through mobile banking, point-of-sale (POS), and web-based transactions. Nigeria's economic growth is proxied by real gross domestic product (RGDP). This study is based on the financial intermediation theory and employs a Vector Autoregression (VAR) model in first differences, after verifying that all variables are integrated of order one and are not cointegrated. The results show that neither traditional nor digital financial inclusion variables have a statistically significant short-run effect on real GDP. However, a strong autoregressive behaviour was observed within the financial inclusion indicators themselves, especially for deposit accounts, mobile banking, and POS usage. A substitution effect is observed between POS and web banking, indicating shifts in user preference across digital channels. The findings of this study imply that while financial inclusion systems are becoming more established, their macroeconomic impact may unfold over the long term. This study stresses the importance of strengthening infrastructure, promoting financial literacy, and integrating financial services to maximize their developmental potential.

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected multiple sectors in Indonesia, particularly the financial sector. Amidst economic uncertainty, financial inclusion is crucial to support economic recovery and community welfare. Mobile banking and digital wallets have emerged as effective solutions in improving financial inclusion, facilitating wider access to financial services for people, especially in remote areas. This research uses the journal review method, by analyzing various research sources related to the role of mobile banking and digital wallets in improving financial inclusion in Indonesia during the pandemic. The findings show that digital financial technology has accelerated the process of financial inclusion, with positive impacts on economic sustainability. By enabling easier and safer access to finance, mobile banking and digital wallets support the achievement of sustainability goals through reducing social and economic inequality. This research contributes to a better understanding of the potential of digital technology in supporting sustainable financial inclusion, and its implications for public policy in Indonesia.

The stokvel economy is estimated to be worth R49 billion in South Africa, with more than 810 000 groups consisting of about 11.5 million members. This study aimed to discover how stokvel members domesticate information communication technologies (ICTs). Domestication theory was used as a theoretical lens for this study. The study used semi-structured interviews to collect data from a sample of 20 stokvel members from 20 different groups of stokvels in Cape Town. The qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that stokvel members use ICTs such as mobile phones, spreadsheet applications (Excel), mobile banking, social media communications (mostly WhatsApp) and e-mail (for those who are employed) in the running of their operations. The members indicated that the use of WhatsApp enables them to reduce the amount of times they have to meet on a face-to-face basis as they did before. They also use technology to send money through mobile money transfer services and banks. Age influenced the adoption of ICTs among stokvel members – i.e. older members seem resistant to the use of technology. This study makes a contribution to the discourse on digital financial inclusion, as well as a contribution to practice by providing empirically grounded insights regarding ICT use behaviour patterns among members of informal savings and credit associations.

A society in which economics is a tool to improve people’s quality of life and equity for all peoples has to be financially inclusive at a fundamental level. This paper delves into the meaning of financial inclusion and investigates mobile banking as a resource to that end. Mobile banking is a transformative, building block force in financial inclusion; in the case of emerging economies where it is far more ubiquitously available, traditional banking infrastructure presence is very limited. Through a literature review and research approach, this study investigates how mobile banking is used in bridging financial gaps for low income population, rural population and micro entrepreneurs. The findings indicate that mobile banking has a large impact on financial access, economic participation and digital financial literacy. But there are still structural barriers to achieving financial inclusion like gender inequalities, digital illiteracy, cybersecurity dangers and inconsistent regulatory frameworks. These can be addressed via stronger consumer protection policies, more fintech-government collaboration as well as more fintech minded financial education programs. The main contribution of this paper is to add to the conversation on digital financial inclusion and policy recommendations on how to make mobile banking more accessible. Future research should further concentrate on the long term effects on the socioeconomic dimensions, integration of AI and blockchain in the domain of digital banking and finally on specific region based regulatory frameworks for achieving better financial inclusion.

BackgroundResearch has consistently indicated that most children do not consume sufficient fruit and vegetables to provide them with a healthy, balanced diet. This study set out to trial a simple, low-cost behavioural nudge intervention to encourage children to select and consume more fruit and vegetables with their lunchtime meal in a primary school cafeteria.MethodsFour primary schools were randomly allocated to either the control or the intervention condition and baseline data were collected over two days in each school. Following this, changes were made to the choice architecture of the school cafeterias in the intervention schools and maintained over a three-week period. The intervention included improved positioning and serving of fruit, accompanied by attractive labelling of both fruit and vegetables on offer. Next, data were collected over two days in each school, with menus matched in each instance between baseline and follow-up. We employed a validated and sensitive photographic method to estimate individual children’s (N = 176) consumption of vegetables, fruit, vitamin C, fibre, total sugars, and their overall calorie intake.ResultsSignificant increases were recorded in the intervention schools for children’s consumption of fruit, vitamin C, and fibre. No significant changes were observed in the control condition. The increases in fruit consumption were recorded in a large proportion of individual children, irrespective of their baseline consumption levels. No changes in vegetable consumption were observed in either condition.ConclusionsThese results are the first to show that modest improvements to the choice architecture of school catering, and inclusion of behavioural nudges, can significantly increase fruit consumption, rather than just selection, in primary-age children. This has implications for the development of national and international strategies to promote healthy eating in schools.Trial registrationAsPredicted: 3943 05/02/2017. URL: https://aspredicted.org/see_one.php?a_id=3943

70 Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) patients undergoing radiation therapy (RT) need comfortably full bladders during RT to reduce toxicities. Awareness of this state is lacking, and poor compliance is common with standard of care written/verbal instructions, leading to wasted patient value (PV) and inefficient throughput (TE). Herein, we assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a digital behavioral intervention (DBI) to improve bladder filling compliance, methods for quantifying PV, IT, and behavioral biomarkers. Methods: We enrolled 18 non-metastatic PCa patients in a prospective, single-arm pilot study using a DBI. The DBI consists of a smart water bottle and companion app that tracks water consumption. Additionally, visual alerts (water bottle glow and phone notifications) remind the patient to empty his bladder and drink a personalized volume goal (VG) at a set time. The VG is based on simulation bladder volume and reminders are initially set 1.25 hours prior to scheduled RT. Patients were trained to adjust their VG and notification times to achieve comfortably full bladders. Primary endpoint was met if qualitative (QLC) and quantitative compliance (QNC) were both >80%. Other endpoints include acceptability assessed via Service User Technology Acceptability Questionnaire (SUTAQ), engagement (>80% of patients used the device > 50% of the time) and impact of DBI on PV and TE. For QLC, patients were asked if they prepared their bladders before daily RT. QNC was met if bladder volumes on daily CBCT were > 75% of the simulation’s volume. The SUTAQ was given pre- and post-DBI. PV and TE were measured by time spent in clinic and on the linear accelerator (linac), respectively. Biometric data was probed for insights on optimal drinking behaviors. Results: All endpoints were met. QLC was 100% on 375/398 (94.2%) of total treatments, while QNC was 88.9% on 341/398 (85.7%) total treatments. Patients were accepting of DBI with few privacy concerns (4.33/5.00), believe in benefits (4.00/5.00), high satisfaction (4.56/5.00) and high usability (4.24/5.00). Most patients, 15/18 (83.3%), used the DBI on >50% of treatments and met the engagement requirements. Patients with empty bladders (n=43) spent significantly more time (75.14 vs 50.59 minutes, p=0.007) in clinic than patients who came with full bladders (n=355). Similarly, these patients spent nearly twice as long on the linac (21.63 v 12.50 minutes, p<0.001). Shorter time spent drinking correlated with empty bladders (17.07 vs 27.85 min, p=0.027). Conclusions: This digital intervention trial showed high rates of bladder filling compliance and engagement. High patient-value and throughput efficiency was feasibly quantified by shortened clinic times and linac usage, respectively. Future studies are needed to evaluate clinical outcomes, patient experience and cost benefit. Clinical trial information: NCT04946214 .

With the rapid development of technology, cashless payments were gained huge popularity among customers. Digital wallets, as a Fintech product, facilitate their customers to do mobile banking, mobile payments, and mobile trading more conveniently. COVID – 19 pandemic hit the world of a sudden, and Sri Lanka was also severely affected by this pandemic. Therefore, the Sri Lankan government has imposed lockdowns, quarantine curfews, and other travel restrictions to maintain the social distance among the citizens. Hence most of the day-to-day activities become the online basis. People used the internet to do their daily activities because of the convenience and the safety concerns during the COVID – 19 pandemics. Due to the travel restrictions, people were not able to travel, and they had no other choice rather than to use the online facilities to do their daily transactions. This study explores the factors that can impact the continuous intention to use digital wallets as an online payment method during the COVID – 19 pandemics. To identify these factors, questionnaires were distributed among 250 people. Correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression methods were mainly used to analyze the data obtained by the questionnaires. This analysis showed that convenience, security, usefulness, and social influence have a significant and positive impact on the usage of digital wallets. According to the following findings, this research can be concluded as these four factors can directly impact the continuous intention to use digital wallets during the COVID – 19 pandemics. Finally, this study also helps the digital wallet service providers to identify the areas they have to think critically to provide a better service to their customers.

Purpose – This article investigates the effectiveness of behavioural economics tools in increasing participation in voluntary pension programmes, explicitly focusing on automatic enrollment, default contribution rates, tax incentives, and behavioural nudges. The study aims to: (1) analyse how automatic enrollment influences participation rates across different countries, and (2) examine how trust in financial institutions and financial literacy moderate the effectiveness of these behavioural interventions. Methodology – This study adopts a comparative approach, examining four countries that have implemented or experimented with auto-enrolment and other behavioural interventions—Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. The research draws on existing academic literature, policy reports, and empirical studies to outline each system’s structure, the influence of cultural and institutional contexts, and the interplay of financial literacy and trust in shaping saving decisions. Findings – The findings suggest that automatic enrollment can significantly increase pension participation rates, particularly when reinforced by sound regulatory policies, transparent governance, and initiatives to enhance financial literacy. However, trust in governmental and financial institutions emerges as a crucial moderating factor; lower trust often translates into reduced uptake of voluntary schemes. Behavioural nudges—framing, choice architecture, and matching contributions—prove pivotal in guiding individuals toward more proactive retirement savings.

This study provides a rural viewpoint to the global research and literature on adoption of digital wallet and mobile banking among rural customer. It empirically examines the most influencing factors that stimulating to digital wallet and mobile banking user for service adoption. Primary and secondary data sources are used. A sample of 300 customers was surveyed from the rural areas of Maharashtra state, INDIA. A Simple Random Sampling method is used for selections of area from Maharashtra state and Chi-square testing was used in stated hypothesis. The study concludes that Security-Privacy, Trust and Familiarity has significant impact on Mobile banking adoption. And qualitative factors such has Prestige, Speed, Trust, Safety & Security, Easiness and Familiarity has major influence on rural customer for the adopting of Digital Wallet and Mobile banking services offered from financial institution

This field experiment examined the efficacy of a behavioral nudge intervention towards lowering sugar intake in Indonesia. Specifically, two competing hypotheses were tested as to whether behavioral nudge played an additive role (i.e., the Incremental Hypothesis) or contributed to a ceiling effect (i.e., the Saturation Hypothesis) alongside social context and competition in a multimodal intervention program. This field experiment used a three-factorial mixed design involving 403 Indonesian participants based on power statistical analysis: 2 (sugar content nudge: lower sugar tea vs. regular sugar tea default) × 2 (social context: individual vs. group) × 2 (competition: absent vs. present). Nudging was the most powerful intervention in reducing sugar intake, but its effectiveness might be attenuated by social loafing even within Indonesia's collectivist culture. Competition did not work synergistically with nudging but was effective under the nonnudge condition. Our results are consistent with those of previous research showing that behavioral nudging has a stronger impact on behavioral change than nonnudge strategies. Contrary to some previous research, people in collectivist Indonesia did engage in social loafing: achievement motivation is not necessarily enhanced in a team of people in a collectivist culture. The Nudge × Competition interaction supports the saturation hypothesis in favor of behavioral nudging: using more than one intervention, when a potent strategy such as nudging is present, might result in diminishing returns that could reduce the overall benefit-cost profile of such multimodal intervention programs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Financial inclusion is increasingly recognized as a catalyst for socio-economic empowerment, especially in developing countries. In India, the rural informal workforce remains one of the most vulnerable segments, often excluded from formal financial services. With the advent of digital technology, innovative platforms such as mobile banking, digital payment systems, and government-driven schemes like Jan Dhan Yojana, UPI, and Aadhaar-enabled services have transformed financial access for the unbanked. This paper examines how digital financial inclusion impacts the economic empowerment of rural informal workers in India. Based on a mixed-method study conducted in selected villages, the research highlights the benefits, barriers, and policy implications of digital financial services for informal workers. The findings indicate that while digital inclusion has improved access, savings, and risk resilience, persistent issues like digital illiteracy, connectivity gaps, and lack of trust hinder its full potential. The paper concludes with policy suggestions to strengthen digital financial inclusion as a tool for sustainable rural development