Examining the influence of ICT innovation in the finance-tourism nexus in Asia

Abstract

This study adds a new perspective to the finance-tourism relation by examining the role of information and communication technology (ICT) in the dynamics. We interrogate the discourse with data on 44 Asian economies from 2010-2019. The approach entails the use of tourism receipts, domestic credit to the private sector, four ICT indicators (mobile phone subscriptions, fixed telephone subscription, fixed broadband subscription and secured Internet servers). For the most part, the results reveal that (1) finance and ICT independently boost tourism; (2) the interaction effect is negative, (3) negative interaction not sufficient to erase the enhancing-properties of finance on tourism; (4) positive net impact of finance; and (5) results are heterogeneous across the sub-samples. Our findings strengthen the argument for financial technology (FinTech) and calls for stronger integration of the financial system with ICT innovation in order to fully harness the potentials and gains from tourism.