Mobile Money Adoption Research Articles

Is better access to mobile networks associated with increased mobile money adoption? Evidence from the micro-data of six developing countries

In several developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, accessibility to digital financial services is increasing because of the development of mobile money services. People previously excluded from the financial system have started to have access to financial services such as receiving and sending remittances, saving, and borrowing. This study examines the effect of network accessibility on the use of mobile money in six developing countries (Bangladesh, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tanzania, and Uganda) using GPS information on each household and mobile phone network coverage maps. We find that among these six countries, network accessibility is associated with the use of mobile money in a robust way only in Pakistan and Tanzania. In those two countries, when a household location becomes 10 km closer to the center of the area with multiple mobile networks, the probability of using mobile money increases by 10 percent. In the other countries, we did not find a robust relationship between the use of mobile money and network accessibility. This suggests that increasing network accessibility may not be an efficient method for increasing mobile money adoption in certain countries. The fact that mobile money use rates differ between Tanzania and Pakistan also suggests that the effect of mobile networks is unrelated to the overall level of mobile money adoption.

Extending UTAUT2 in Mobile money adoption and actual use behavior: An empirical research in Vietnam during the Covid-19

The goal of this article is to examine the antecedents of behavioral intention toward mobile money, as well as the mediating role of trust on behavioral intention and financial inclusion in Vietnam during the COVID-19 period, using an expanded unified theory of technology acceptance and use (UTAUT2). The data were collected by an online self-administered questionnaire and analyzed using SmartPLS 3.3.3. To determine the exogenous constructs’ relevance and performance, a matrix analysis of importanceperformancewas used. The findings indicate that behavioral desire to use mobile money is primarily driven by awareness, structural assurance, habit, and performance expectation. The behavioral intention of mobile money will substantially influence its adoption, and trust will not act as a mediator between behavioral intention and financial inclusion. The extended UTAUT2 was used for the first time to analyze mobile money in Vietnam. Additionally, the new research provides a more comprehensive explanation for users’ financial inclusion than past research provided.

Adoption of mobile money among internal migrant workers during the corona pandemic in India: a study focused on moderation by mode of payments

The paper studies the impact of the corona pandemic on the adoption and diffusion of mobile payments (m-payments) among internal migrant workers in India. These internal migrant workers in India constitute approximately one-third of the workforce. Protection motivation theory (PMT) and unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) are models used to examine the impact of the corona pandemic on the adoption of m-payments systems among internal migrant workers in India. A schedule was filled by 400 such migrant workers in India during the pandemic period. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM). Analysis shows that social influence, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, perceived severity, self-efficacy, and response efficacy during the corona pandemic significantly influence the migrant workers' behavioural intention. The mode of payment convenience acts as a moderator between response efficacy and behavioural intention.

Adoption of mobile money among internal migrant workers during the corona pandemic in India: a study focused on moderation by mode of payments

Adoption of mobile money among internal migrant workers during the corona pandemic in India: a study focused on moderation by mode of payments

Mobile Phone Communication and Mobile Money Adoption in Burkina Faso: A Direct and Indirect Network Effects Analysis

Mobile Phone Communication and Mobile Money Adoption in Burkina Faso: A Direct and Indirect Network Effects Analysis

Classifying Swahili Smishing Attacks for Mobile Money Users: A Machine-Learning Approach

Due to the massive adoption of mobile money in Sub-Saharan countries, the global transaction value of mobile money exceeded $2 billion in 2021. Projections show transaction values will exceed $3 billion by the end of 2022, and Sub-Saharan Africa contributes half of the daily transactions. SMS (Short Message Service) phishing cost corporations and individuals millions of dollars annually. Spammers use Smishing (SMS Phishing) messages to trick a mobile money user into sending electronic cash to an unintended mobile wallet. Though Smishing is an incarnation of phishing, they differ in the information available and attack strategy. As a result, detecting Smishing becomes difficult. Numerous models and techniques to detect Smishing attacks have been introduced for high-resource languages, yet few target low-resource languages such as Swahili. This study proposes a machine-learning based model to classify Swahili Smishing text messages targeting mobile money users. Experimental results show a hybrid model of Extratree classifier feature selection and Random Forest using TFIDF (Term Frequency Inverse Document Frequency) vectorization yields the best model with an accuracy score of 99.86%. Results are measured against a baseline Multinomial Naïve-Bayes model. In addition, comparison with a set of other classic classifiers is also done. The model returns the lowest false positive and false negative of 2 and 4, respectively, with a Log-Loss of 0.04. A Swahili dataset with 32259 messages is used for performance evaluation.

Can Mobile Money Adoption Induce Microenterprises to Formalize? Evidence From a Field Experiment in Burkina Faso

Can Mobile Money Adoption Induce Microenterprises to Formalize? Evidence From a Field Experiment in Burkina Faso

The role of mobile money adoption in moderating the influence of access to finance in firm performance

The role of mobile money adoption in moderating the influence of access to finance in firm performance

Psychoanalysis of the mobile money ecosystem in the digital age: generational cohort and technology generation theoretical approach

ABSTRACT The primary purpose of this study is to establish the moderating role of generational differences in the relationship between mobile money adoption and use and financial inclusion in developing countries. Three key findings emerged: first, there is a moderating role of generational differences on mobile money adoption and use; second, both mobile money adoption and use and generational differences have significant and positive effects on financial inclusion; third, the inclusion of generational differences, as a moderator, results in 6.7 per cent increase in financial inclusion in developing countries.

Product-specific determinants of Mobile Money Adoption: Evidence from Egypt during COVID-19

The paper aims to examine the factors affecting users’ adoption intentions of mobile money in Egypt during the COVID -19 using a binomial logit model. Our econometric estimation results show that, in general, perceived benefits, ease of use, and proximity of points of sale are the significant variables that specify the adoption of mobile money in Egypt. Moreover, socio-demographic characteristics showed different results. Women are more concerned about the perceived benefits and ease of use while men added other concerns: the time taken to conduct a transaction and the proximity to sale points. For individuals with lower income, ease of use is the primary determinant, while for those with higher income, it is the proximity of points of sale and safety, which determines the adoption of mobile money services. Finally, for young individuals, under the age of 30, perceived benefits, ease of use, and the proximity of points of sale are the main determinants of mobile money service use.

Reimaging the mobile money ecosystem and financial inclusion of MSMEs in Uganda: Hedonic motivation as mediator

PurposeMobile money is a service in which the mobile phone is used to access financial services. Thus, the mobile money platform should be user-friendly with hedonic features that are attractive and pleasurable to the users. The main purpose of this paper is to establish the mediating effect of hedonism in the relationship between mobile money adoption and usage and financial inclusion of micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Uganda.Design/methodology/approachThis study reports interesting findings by using data obtained from MSMEs located in northern Uganda. The structural equation and measurement models were generated in analysis of moment structures (AMOS) to answer the hypotheses of this study.FindingsThe findings suggest that including hedonism in the model improves mobile money adoption and usage by 12.7 percentage points in order to promote financial inclusion of MSMEs in Uganda. Hedonism is found to affect mobile money adoption and usage, which in turn influences financial inclusion.Research limitations/implicationsThis study used cross-sectional data to document the mediating effect of hedonism in the relationship between mobile money adoption and usage and financial inclusion. The study analyzed mobile money adoption and usage, hedonism, and financial inclusion from the MSMEs owners' perspective. Future research could use relevant longitudinal data to verify multiple benefits of hedonism in enhancing mobile money adoption and usage as well as other potential digital financial technologies.Practical implicationsThis study categorically informs mobile telephone network operators and inventors of mobile money applications to invest more in developing pleasurable and user-friendly mobile money features that can attract more users. The digital financial services' application developers should design user-friendly mobile money applications that suit the needs of all users. This requires careful understanding of diverse attractive features of mobile money services.Originality/valueThis study offers direction to developers of mobile money applications to design pleasurable and user-friendly mobile money platform with features, which are attractive to the different users. Particularly, it highlights the role of hedonic motivation in promoting adoption and use of mobile money technology to increase the scope of financial inclusion of MSMEs in a developing country like Uganda. Indeed, the novelty in this paper is grounded on a blend of financial technology and psychology to promote financial inclusion in under developed economies.

Analysis of financial literacy and its effects on financial inclusion in Uganda

The paper investigates whether financial literacy influences financial inclusion in Uganda on the premise that there are currently few to no studies that investigate this causality and the general lack of consensus on an appropriate measure for financial literacy. It uses data from the FinScope (2018) consumer survey on Uganda and applies Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to construct a composite financial literacy index of the adult bankable population (16 years and older). The index is then regressed - alongside other demand-side control variables, against a measure of financial inclusion using logistic models. Our measure of financial literacy significantly and positively affects financial inclusion in Uganda even in the presence of variables like age, gender, income, and education. Individuals who make financial ends meet, plan for their financial future welfare, seek financial advice, and are receptive towards technology, are 'ceteris paribus', more likely to be financially included than not. Technology and mobile money adoption enhance financial inclusion while more men are financially included than women. While the dataset is limited to demand-side variables of Uganda and cannot be generalised, comparative cross-country studies with robust datasets are needed to provide further insights. The paper advances a novel approach for measuring financial literacy for developing economies while contributing to efforts to standardize an international measure. It also provides empirical insights to support the notion that financial literacy should be addressed more holistically and recommends this approach for improving financial inclusion in Uganda and globally.

Social Exclusion and Financial Barriers to Entrepreneurship

Although extant theory highlights the importance of access to sources of entrepreneurial finance, it provides less insight into how marginalized individuals’ financial barriers to entrepreneurship are influenced by the adoption of digital financial technologies such as mobile money. We reconceptualize financial barriers to entrepreneurship as a combination of access to sources of finance and frictions in financial transactions. We argue that adoption of mobile money by individuals increases their entrepreneurial intentions particularly when individuals face higher social exclusion, and that mobile money and bank accounts work in a complementary manner particularly when individuals face higher social exclusion. Analyzing recent data from the Global Findex Database on a large sample of 154,472 adults across 144 countries, we find support for our core arguments. Overall, we extend theory on financial barriers to entrepreneurship, and enrich the emerging narrative on mobile money by highlighting the importance of complementarity between mobile money and bank accounts.

Mobile money adoption, input use, and farm output among smallholder rice farmers in Ghana

AbstractFinancial exclusion continues to be a major challenge to smallholder farmers' participation in agricultural value chains in developing countries. Digitizing procurements and other forms of transactions using mobile money technology among value chain actors is essential for ensuring financial inclusion and enhancing agricultural value chain transformation. This study examines the factors influencing the adoption of mobile money technology and the impact of the technology on production input use and farm output, utilizing data from a cross‐sectional survey of smallholder rice farmers in northern Ghana. A linear regression with endogenous treatment effects method is employed to account for both observable and unobservable selection bias. The results reveal positive and significant marginal effect of mobile money technology on input use and farm output. Adopters of the technology applied 18% and 13% more fertilizer and herbicides, respectively than nonadopters. The output increased by about 4% for the adopters. The results also show that mobile money technology adoption, input use and farm output are significantly influenced by education, farmer‐based organization (FBO) membership, access to credit, input prices, and location fixed effects. Expansion of mobile technology networks, increased investment in education, credit facilities, and FBOs can be quite relevant in promoting the adoption of mobile money technology in Ghana. [EconLit citations: C34, C35, Q12, Q13]

Mobile money, bank deposit and perceived financial inclusion in Cameroon

Today more than ever, banks are facing the race for innovation in mobile financial services. Several studies have focused on the factors driving the adoption of mobile money, but the aspect of deposit collection activity by banks, essential as a basis for granting an account and providing financial services to customers, has been neglected. This study aims to examine the effect of perceived cost, relative advantage and perceived ubiquity on the intention to adopt mobile money for bank deposits, as well as the effect of its use on financial inclusion in Cameroun. A quantitative approach based on the PLS-SEM algorithm is used on a sample of 310 Cameroonian respondents. Results show that these factors positively influence the intention to adopt Mobile Money for bank deposits and that its use has a significant positive effect on financial inclusion. The study will help bank managers to develop effective marketing approaches and to improve their offer with adapted products and services, more specifically to enhance customer proximity and produce effective channels to suck up potential bank deposits not yet captured by banks.

Institutional and firm-level factors for mobile money adoption in emerging markets–A configurational analysis

Mobile money is a widespread innovation throughout emerging countries. Since neither country-level institutions nor firm-level factors alone offer satisfactory explanations for mobile money's success, we draw on institutional theory to uncover how firms interact with institutions in target markets and explain the adoption of mobile money services. We perform a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis on 110 mobile money services from 46 emerging countries revealing four recipes for widespread adoption. In configuration 1, providers with high market power reach high adoption–irrespective of enabling institutions–if institutional voids are large. However, configurations 2 and 3 suggest that in most cases either enabling regulation or sufficient mobile and educational infrastructure are key for successful adoption. In these three configurations, providers are part of multinational telecommunication firms operating in markets with financial market voids. Configuration 4 suggests that certain fintech firms reach high adoption rates in more developed financial services sectors because they offer a broad scope of services. We highlight the usefulness of a configurational lens for institutional theory to understand phenomena at the intersection of innovation, society, and business – especially in emerging markets with complex institutional settings.

Mobile money and regional financial integration: Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa

Orientation: The article examines the impact of mobile money adoption and regional financial integration in sub-Saharan Africa.Research purpose: The study sought to uncover the relationship between mobile money adoption and cross-border remittances as a de facto measure of regional integration.Motivation for the study: The extent to which differences in mobile money penetration rates across sub-Saharan Africa influence cross-border remittances remains a grey area that necessitates empirical investigation.Research approach, design and method: A quantitative research method was adopted and the study examined aggregated quarterly data obtained from 41 countries making up the four regions of sub-Saharan Africa. The study applied the dynamic ordinary least squares and fully modified ordinary least squares approaches as the estimation techniques.Main findings: Mobile money adoption has positively impacted cross-border remittances and improved de facto regional financial links in sub-Saharan Africa. The study’s findings also support the view that better governance through control of corruption and political stability removes dependence on remittances.Practical/managerial implications: There is a need to integrate mobile money and other cross-border remittance platforms to improve access to financial services for migrants and harness their savings into the mainstream economy.Contributions/value-add: The study adds to the body of knowledge by showing that higher mobile money penetration rates have regional integration benefits.

Factors Influencing The Adoption And Use Of Mobile Money In Cameroon: Case Of Mobile Money Operators And Users In Buea

Mobile Money is an innovation that has transformed e-business in the Cameroonian context. This study examines the factors that enhance the adoption and use of mobile money in Buea, capital of the South West Region of Cameroon. The theoretical framework used is the diffusion of innovation. The qualitative approach is adopted, with 10 mobile money operators and 10 mobile money users interviewed using a structured interview protocol. Results show that participants prefer adopting and using mobile services because they are easy to use, convenient, readily accessible, and have less charges compared to the traditional banking system. Telecommunications companies should therefore, continue to consider less charges and bonuses as a strategy to increase penetration and adoption of mobile money services. Likewise, the instructions and language essential to effect Mobile Money operations like internet and airtime purchase should remain simple.

Mobile money adoption and response to idiosyncratic shocks: Empirics from five selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa

In sub-Saharan Africa, financial inclusion remains low, with households being more vulnerable to idiosyncratic shocks. Mobile money has been identified as having the potential to boost financial inclusion while closing the related gender- and rural-gaps in the process. Nonetheless, little is known about how mobile money facilitates the sending and receipt of financial support in times of idiosyncratic shocks. This study examines the link between mobile money adoption and response to idiosyncratic shocks from the perspectives of senders and receivers using comprehensive household data across five countries. Employing the number of mobile money agents in respondent's neighbourhood as instrument in an instrumental variable probit procedure, we find that adoption of mobile money is associated with an increase in the probability to send (receive) financial support to (from) families, friends, relatives, co-workers and acquaintances in times of idiosyncratic shocks but the sending effect outweighs that of the receiving. Overall, female-headed and rural-located households end up being the net beneficiaries of mobile money adoption when it comes to idiosyncratic shocks. Mobile money regulators and standard setting authorities are urged to engage with telecommunications companies and other stakeholders to deepen the digital financial ecosystem.

Mobile Money Adoption and Response to Idiosyncratic Shocks: Empirics from Five Selected Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa

In sub-Saharan Africa, financial inclusion remains low, with households being more vulnerable to idiosyncratic shocks. Mobile money has been identified as having the potential to boost financial inclusion while closing the related gender- and rural-gaps in the process. Nonetheless, little is known about how mobile money facilitates the sending and receipt of financial support in times of idiosyncratic shocks. This study examines the link between mobile money adoption and response to idiosyncratic shocks from the perspectives of senders and receivers using comprehensive household data across five countries. Employing the number of mobile money agents in respondent’s neighbourhood as instrument in an instrumental variable probit procedure, we find that adoption of mobile money is associated with an increase in the probability to send (receive) financial support to (from) families, friends, relatives, co-workers and acquaintances in times of idiosyncratic shocks but the sending effect outweighs that of the receiving. Overall, female-headed and rural-located households end up being the net beneficiaries of mobile money adoption when it comes to idiosyncratic shocks. Mobile money regulators and standard setting authorities are urged to engage with telecommunications companies and other stakeholders to deepen the digital financial ecosystem.