Role of Culture in Customer Acceptance of Neobanks

Abstract

We examine customer acceptance of neobanks across national cultures using the technology acceptance model (TAM) extended with an additional construct, i.e. trust, accounting for scepticism surrouding digital innovations. We incorporate dimensions developed by Hofstede to evaluate national cultural effects on the modified TAM. For this, we collect primary quantitative data through questionnaires obtaining a sample including many nationalities. We assess our variant of the TAM using partial least squares structural equation modelling to quantify the complex relationships with reflective constructs. We find that national cultural dimensions may not have a significant effect on the customer acceptance. Moreover, the original two independent constructs of the TAM, perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, have a significant positive weak direct effect on acceptance. However, perceived ease of use has a significant positive strong effect on perceived usefulness and trust. Finally, the theorised trust dimension has a significant positive weak effect on both the perceived usefulness of, and the behavioural intention to use neobanks.