Financial Service Providers Research Articles

Demographic Factors Affecting Customer's Perception toward the Use of Internet Banking in Pokhara Metropolitan City of Nepal

Background: The provision of financial services to customers has been transformed by internet banking, which employs the internet as the primary means for carrying out banking transactions. Objectives: The research aims to assess the perception of customers toward the use of internet banking services and find out the demographic factors affecting it. Method: For this study, a descriptive and analytical research design was utilized, in which 225 customers of banks in Pokhara Metropolitan City of Nepal were purposively selected. The study employed various statistical techniques, including frequency distribution analysis, mean score analysis, and inferential analysis such as t-test and one-way ANOVA. Result: According to the study, most customers are aware of and have access of internet banking services. Customers of commercial banks view internet banking services to be simple, secure, and less expensive to use, with the bank providing adequate help. It was discovered that marital status, age, education, and economic level all affect awareness levels. Education influences access to internet and respondents' attitudes toward cost-saving are influenced by their marital status, education, and income level. Similarly, it was discovered that education, occupation, and income level aff ect the perception of ease of use, employment affects the impression of security, and marital status, education, and occupation affect the perception of bank assistance. Conclusions: The study concludes that marital status, educational qualification, monthly income of family, and working status are the major factors affecting the perception of the respondents toward the use of internet banking. Further, this study concludes that people of higher age and low education level are less aware of internet banking service.

Legal status of entities providing consumer financial services: reforming the institutional structure of the market

The article analyzes the peculiarities of the legal status of banks, credit unions, pawnshops, financial companies, leasing companies, insurers, non-state pension funds, payment service providers. It also offers a description of credit organizations under national and foreign legislation. Attention is focused on legislative changes to the principles of activity of financial intermediaries associated with the adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On Financial Services and Financial Companies». At the same time, the classification of certain participants in the financial services market to the list of financial intermediaries is criticized. The activity of financial organizations in attracting financial resources and placing them on their own behalf is called financial intermediation, taking into account its economic essence. Based on a generalized analysis of the specifics of the legal status of these subjects, it is proposed under providers of consumer financial services to understand financial organizations, and in cases specified by law, other legal entities that, on the basis of a license, provide for fee services regarding the use of financial means for the purpose of obtaining profit or other property benefit by consumers or third parties to meet their personal, family needs, not related to related to entrepreneurial or independent professional activity.

Assessment of the Causes of Business Process Failure at Authorised Financial Service Providers in South Africa and Implementation of Strategy Results

Assessment of the Causes of Business Process Failure at Authorised Financial Service Providers in South Africa and Implementation of Strategy Results

A Study on the Association of Entrepreneurship Ecosystem with Financial Inclusion

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the association of entrepreneurship ecosystem with financial inclusion, and to explore the potential ways in which the ecosystem can be leveraged to improve access to financial services for marginalized communities. Theoretical framework: The study utilizes the ecosystem approach to entrepreneurship, which emphasizes the interdependence and interplay of various stakeholders in the entrepreneurial process. The study also draws on the concept of financial inclusion, which refers to the provision of affordable and accessible financial services to all individuals and businesses. Design/methodology/approach: The study employs a mixed-methods approach, including a literature review, case studies, and surveys, to collect data from a variety of stakeholders in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. Findings: The findings suggest that the entrepreneurship ecosystem plays a critical role in promoting financial inclusion. The ecosystem can be leveraged to increase access to financial services for marginalized communities through the development of innovative financial products and services, the creation of mentorship and networking opportunities, and the promotion of policies that encourage financial inclusion. Research, practical and social implications: The study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between entrepreneurship and financial inclusion, and has implications for policymakers and practitioners seeking to promote financial inclusion through entrepreneurship. The findings can also inform the design and implementation of programs and policies aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and financial inclusion in marginalized communities. Originality/value: The study is among the first to examine the association of entrepreneurship ecosystem with financial inclusion and to explore the potential ways in which the ecosystem can be leveraged to improve access to financial services for marginalized communities.

Factors Influencing Accounting Outsourcing Using the Transaction Cost Economics Model

This paper presents the results of research conducted to identify the factors that influence the decisions of company management to outsource accounting services. A transaction cost economics (TCE) model was used to analyse factors that influence high levels of outsourcing of accounting tasks in the case of Montenegro, where, based on our sample, 75.4% of companies enter outsourcing arrangements with bookkeeping agencies or with external accountants. With an adaptation of International Accounting Standards (IAS) and legal requirements for submission of standardised year-end reports, there is evident growth of bookkeeping and financial service providers on the market and an evident trend of companies entering accounting service outsourcing with those agencies. A survey was developed to investigate 12 variables that, according to the TCE model, influence outsourcing decisions. The selection of variables was based on previous research in the field using the TCE or Resource-Based View model (the most common models used for this analysis). In contrast, new variables were introduced that measure the effects of the introduction of IAS through legal reporting obligations in Montenegro. By developing the model this way, it became possible to predict 47% of the variance of the dependent variable and to identify the main factors (other than price) that influence the decision of managers to outsource accounting services.

Subjective Knowledge, Perceived Ability, Motivation, and Age: A Mediated Moderation Model of Antecedents of Stock Market Investors’ Information Search

Information search is one of the major steps in the consumer purchase decision-making process and is also essential in making a sensible choice. Researchers have attempted in a variety of ways over the past few decades to explore consumers’ information search behaviour, largely for consumer goods. Today’s rapidly expanding financial services markets are also attracting researchers’ interest in investigating investors’ information search processes. Investors pursue information search activity to manage their expected return on their investment. The information search process helps them to create knowledge for better decision-making. Financial service providers are keen to understand investors’ information search process to establish client-centric advisory services. The present study focuses on exploring relationships among the antecedents of stock market investors’ pre-purchase information search behaviour. In a mediated moderation model, interrelationships between subjective knowledge perceived ability to search, and motivation to search were investigated. The role of investors’ age was also explored as a moderating variable.

An Empirical Study on Awareness About Investment Opportunities Amongst Higher Education Students

This research paper investigates the level of awareness about investment opportunities among higher education students, with a focus on preferred investment options and awareness levels. The objectives of the study are threefold to identify different contemporary investment opportunities, to measure the level of awareness among higher education students, and to explore the highly preferred investment options among these students. To achieve these objectives, we conducted a survey of 101 higher education students to gather data about their investment preferences and levels of awareness about different investment opportunities. Our findings indicate that while the majority of students are aware of traditional investment opportunities such as real estate, stocks, and bonds, their awareness of newer investment opportunities such as cryptocurrencies and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) is low. Furthermore, we found that majority of the students are already aware of investment opportunities and their long-term goal is to being financially independent. This suggests that educational interventions could play a key role in improving financial literacy among higher education students. In conclusion, our study highlights the need for greater awareness and education about contemporary investment opportunities amongst higher education students. This research contributes to the literature on financial literacy and investment behavior among young adults, and has important implications for educators, policymakers, and financial service providers seeking to improve financial literacy and investment behaviour among this demographic.

The Relationship between Investor Behaviours with Fatwa Coordination of Amanah Saham Nasional (ASN) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB)

The fatwas coordination of Amanah Saham Nasional (ASN) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) in 2017 revealed a subsequent growth in the number of ASB shareholders. To the extent that there is a connection between investor behaviors and the coordination of fatwas in making investment decisions. The systematic literature study also proves the inconsistency of fatwa studies, especially concerning human behaviour based on the sharia. Numerous studies have been done on how religion affects conduct, but they do not specifically refer to a fatwa when they address religion. In order to break the current gap, this paper investigates how the coordination of fatwas in Malaysia affects the behavior of Amanah Saham Nasional (ASN) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) investors. A total of 452 samples were descriptively and inferentially analyzed using SPSS utilizing a series of questionnaires given through Google Forms to ASN and ASB investors. The findings indicate that the correlation coefficient for behavior variables is 1,000, whereas the correlation value for fatwa variables is 0.460. The Spearmen Table reveals a relatively significant relationship between investor behaviors variables and fatwa variables that correlate linearly. These findings show that ASN and ASB investors consider fatwa variables in their investment decisions, which influences financial service providers, fatwa institutions, and the community, particularly in terms of addressing fatwa inconsistency for the sake of the ummah. The implications of this research focus on showing the beneficial role of religious organizations in the country's economic growth. It also highlights the concern of financial service providers in fulfilling the community's demands in accordance with Islamic law.

Loan classification using logistic regression

Objectives. The studied problem of loan classification is particularly important for financial institutions, which must efficiently allocate monetary assets between entities as part of the provision of financial services. Therefore, it is more important than ever for financial institutions to be able to identify reliable borrowers as accurately as possible. At the same time, machine learning is one of the tools for making such decisions. The aim of this work is to analyze the possibility of efficient use of logistic regression for solving the task of loan classification.Methods. Based on the logistic regression algorithm using historical data on loans issued, the following metrics are calculated: cost function, Accuracy, Precision, Recall и score. Polynomial regression and principal component analysis are used to determine the optimal set of input data for the being studied logistic regression algorithm.Results. The impact of data normalization on the final result is estimated, the optimal regularization parameter for solving this problem is determined, the impact of the balance of target values is assessed, the optimal boundary value for the logistic regression algorithm is calculated, the influence of increasing input indicators by means of filling in missing values and using polynomials of different degrees is considered and the existing set of input indicators is analyzed for redundancy.Conclusion. The research results confirm that the application of the logistic regression algorithm for solving loan classification problems is appropriate. The use of this algorithm allows to get quickly a working loan classification tool.

Psychosocial Factors of Stock Investors’ Inclination: The Case of the South Pacific Stock Market

Previous research has documented that psychosocial resources and socioeconomic status have significant influences on investment behavior in financial assets. There are currently no studies available about the motivating factors of individual investor participation in the South Pacific Stock Market to the researcher’s knowledge. This study investigates the motivating factors of existing and potential stock market investors in countries with similar socio-cultural backgrounds. Using a purposive sample of potential stock investors in Fiji, the study sample included 162 participants with university education (banking and finance). Two research assistants were involved in collecting data, and 108 questionnaires were received via email and Google forms while the balance 54 were collected physically.The researcher tested how enterprising personality plays a mediating role in relation to the association between individual characteristics and investment behavior in the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) framework. The results revealed that four latent factors (intuition, education and knowledge, sociocultural norms, and enterprising personality) are distinct dimensions of investment inclination together with the maturity factor (age) towards stock investments. The findings will be useful for financial service providers and regulators in designing educational programs to enhance enterprising personality qualities amongst people generally, and inculcate positive attitudes towards stock investments in the young through high school curricula and mass-awareness programs.

Determinants of the financial wellbeing of individuals in an emerging economy: an empirical study

PurposeThe current study aims to identify the impact of financial literacy, financial risk-tolerance, financial socialization, financial stress, socio-demographic factors and financial behavior on the individual financial wellbeing residing in India's National Capital Region (NCR) region. Understanding financial wellbeing is crucial as it helps individuals understand personal finance better and develop a more favorable financial attitude. The information can depict individuals' financial skills, knowledge and attitudes toward achieving financial wellbeing in emerging economies.Design/methodology/approachThrough self-administered survey questionnaires, data are obtained using convenience sampling from 420 (394) respondents regarding individual financial wellbeing levels in India. The survey responses were collected between May 2022 and July 2022. The authors use the “partial least squares structural equation modeling” (PLS-SEM) technique to test the research hypotheses.FindingsThe present study's outcome confirms that five determinants, such as financial literacy, financial risk-tolerance, financial socialization, financial stress and socio-demographic factors, significantly influence the financial behavior of individuals. Further, financial behavior, financial literacy, financial risk-tolerance and financial socialization significantly influence financial wellbeing. However, financial stress and socio-demographic factors have statistically insignificant impacts on financial wellbeing.Originality/valueThe present study is exclusive in which an effort is being made to acquire relative importance on financial behavior and an individual's financial wellbeing. The present paper will help the government, financial services providers, and policymakers in offering innovative economic schemes and designing policies that may enhance the financial wellbeing of individuals. Finally, this article provides the road map for future research in this field.

A Configurational Approach to Investigating the Relationship Between Organizational Culture and Organizational Effectiveness Using Fuzzy-Set Analysis

The theoretical literature on organizational culture strongly emphasizes the multifacetedness of the construct. Nevertheless, empirical research has tended to focus on independent culture dimensions rather than applying a holistic perspective that conceives organizational culture as a complex collective. We addressed this issue by investigating configurations of organizational culture using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) within organizational units of two organizations. Across the two samples (1170 employees in 89 work units of a financial service provider and 998 employees in 49 work units of a fashion retailer), results indicated that culture dimensions do not operate in isolation, but jointly work together in achieving different effectiveness outcomes. The results further suggested that several cultural configurations can be equally effective in reaching the same outcome, and that a clan culture is most relevant for achieving low employee turnover, while a market-oriented culture is most relevant for achieving financial effectiveness. With respect to more specific configurations of cultural elements, the results showed some congruencies, but were mixed overall. The discussion focuses on theoretical implications and future directions for applying configurational, set-theoretic approaches to analyzing organizational culture.

The Role of Financial Technology in Islamic Banks, Iraq as a Model, An Analytical Study for the Period 2010-2019


 
 
 
 The study aims to analyze the environment of the banking sector and to show the role of financial technology in a way that enhances the financing formulas in Islamic banks and in line with the provisions of Islamic Sharia, through data analysis of a sample of Islamic banks in both countries for some variables, a comparative economic analysis, and the descriptive analytical approach was used in The analysis of the samples data was the first bank: the Iraqi Islamic Bank for Investment and Development and the second bank: Elaf Islamic Bank, in which some indicators were taken from the annual financial list of each bank from the paid-in capital and from the total money and credit facilities provided by each bank, and it was shown through the difference table from In terms of the number of branches operating inside and outside the country between government banks and private private banks, including Islamic banks.
 The study concluded with the most important conclusions, including the weakness in the technological infrastructure of the banking sector in Iraq and the lack of encouragement and support to introduce all technological developments from year to year, causing weakness in this sector through the provision of financial and banking services, as well as the low level of education in the financial aspect for individuals and institutions from On the demand side, as well as workers in the banking sector on the supply side.
 
 
 

Centralised KYC - Secure Platform

The KYC chain in the financial industry is crucial and necessitates stringent compliance as well as expensive manual labor. According to estimates, the global cost of KYC procedures has increased to $1.5 billion. Evaluating data and keeping tight tabs on them takes very little time and effort takes very little time and effort to evaluate data and keep tight tabs on them. Each financial service provider develops their own set of requirements for KYC documents under the present centralized approach. Users must comply with KYC standards with each institution and service provider they utilize as a result. Even if user information needs to be changed down the road, all financial institutions and service providers must be informed separately. Create a central KYC database that would be available to everyone. Keywords— CNN (Convolutional Neural Network), SVM (Support Vector Machine), BERT, LSTM (long short-term memory networks), RNN (Recurrent Neural Network), ANN (Artificial Neural Network), DCNN (Deep Convolution Neural Network, MAML (Model- Agnostic Meta- Learning), GRU (Gated Recurrent Unit), BILSTM (Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory)

An Assessment of Cryptomixing Services in Online Illicit Markets

The internet has become a popular marketplace for the sale of illicit products, including stolen personal information, drugs, and firearms. Many of these products are acquired using cryptocurrencies, which are generally defined as forms of digital currency that is traceable through blockchain ledger technology. These currencies are thought to be more secure than other forms of digital payment, though law enforcement and financial service providers have found ways to investigate account holders and their transactions. Consequently, several service providers have begun to offer cryptomixing services, which effectively launders payments to circumvent detection and investigation tools. Few have explored the practices of cryptomixing services, or the ways in which they are marketed on the Open and Dark Web. This inductive qualitative analysis will examine a sample of 18 cryptomixing services advertised on both the Open and Dark Web to better understand cryptomixing and its role in facilitating illicit transactions across the internet.

Protection of consumer rights in Ukraine

The article analyzes the conceptual foundations of the formation of a system of protection of the rights and legitimate interests of consumers. With the help of the dialectical method, a complex of general and special scientific methods, the essence of civil legal protection of consumer rights and organizational, legal and economic aspects of consumer protection have been clarified. The necessity of development and approval of unified standards for rendering financial services to consumers has been demonstrated. The main directions of formation and implementation of the policy of consumer rights protection in the field of trade and provision of financial services, with emphasis on digitalization of relevant legal relations, have also been determined. In the conclusions, the desirability of developing and consolidating, at the normative level, the Comprehensive Program for the Implementation of the State Policy on the Protection of the Rights of Financial Services Consumers for 2023-2027 is substantiated. Finally, arguments were presented to complement the legislation in the field of consumer relations with other normative legal acts in order to guarantee the protection of consumers’ rights.

Financing Sustainable Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review of the Role of Financial Technologies

African agriculture needs to adapt to climate change and shift from unsustainable production practices to sustainable ones. This requires innovative, substantial, and long-term agricultural investments that can allow all agricultural actors to adopt sustainable agricultural practices. Better and more inclusive options to leapfrog Africa’s sustainable agricultural development lie in financial technologies (FinTech). FinTech uses digital technology innovations to ease the provision of financial services to users and thus enhance financial inclusion. The aim of this study is to clarify the important role that FinTech can play in financing sustainability in agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). To examine this role, the study shortlisted 17 SSA countries. The literature on FinTech-enhanced agricultural initiatives in these countries was reviewed. The results confirm that FinTech has the opportunity to become the much needed ‘support system’ for sustainable agriculture in SSA. Most of the financial products accessed by smallholder farmers in the selected countries helped the farmers in addressing production and marketing challenges in agriculture. The technologies can also help to improve efficiency in financing smallholder agriculture, enabling wider adoption of sustainable agricultural practices. To promote the financing of sustainable agriculture at scale, there is a need to train the farmers about the functionality of digital platforms, and policymakers need to address challenges such as gaps in infrastructure between the urban and rural areas.

Using E-Wallet in Collecting and Distributing Zakat in Malaysia

Fintech, or financial technology, seeks to supplement conventional financial techniques in the provision of financial services and improve financial operations through the use of technology. The development of fintech has had a significant positive impact on social activities in addition to financial services. The administration of zakat has advanced to a new level of innovation in zakat collecting and distribution through the use of e-Wallets as one of the fintech channels. This dynamism has helped to partially resolve a long-standing issue with the zakat administration related to openness, accountability, and efficiency in zakat collection and distribution. E-Wallets are thought to have the ability to address these problems. The purpose of the study was to examine the available choices and the most common kind of e-Wallet related to zakat activities that are currently accessible on the market. Therefore, it is necessary to provide answers to queries such as the selections of e-Wallet that are accessible in the present market. It is interesting to examine which e-Wallet is preferable and whether these prominent e-wallet providers provide zakat payment services. The current study applied the qualitative methodology through content and descriptive analyses of articles, official documents, business papers from the commercial sector, and social media inputs. It is believed that this study would shed some new light on the role that e-Wallet providers play in collecting and distributing zakat and will add a new level of information to the public, particularly regarding e-Wallet collaboration with the Zakat institutions.

Municipal Performance in a Network Structure of Financial Operations and Service Provision in the New South Wales Local Government

Municipal Performance in a Network Structure of Financial Operations and Service Provision in the New South Wales Local Government

The Effect of Financial Inclusion and Financial Literacy on Financial Integration of West African Monetary Zone (Wamz)

Deepening financial integration is important for developing economies especially in Africa, that accounts for less than 2% of the world's market capitalization. Financial integration facilitates risk sharing, aids the formation of larger markets which is beneficial to the firms and smoothens consumption inter-temporally. Financial integration will be enhanced through a well-developed financial sector that is all-inclusive of the economic agents in access to financial services at a low cost and at the most convenient time. The access to funds in an integrated market is further determined by the extent of financial knowledge acquired by the economic agents with respect to basic numeracy, interest compounding, understanding inflation and risk diversification. This paper examines the effect of increasing access to financial services and the level of knowledge of financial products on the financial integration of West African Monetary Zone. The ratio of total capital flows to GDP and interest rates on public debt were used in measuring financial integration while the measures of financial inclusion include the number of commercial bank branches, number of ATM machines available, Savings, number of account holders and credit to private sector. Data covering the period 1980–2020 were employed. Unit root test using Levin, Lin and chu t-test method and Im, et al statistics methods were employed while the cointegration test was conducted using the Wald t-test before the panel autoregressive distributed lag model estimation technique was used to estimate the models. The unit root test results revealed that three out of the ten variables were stationary at level whiles others were stationary at first difference. The Wald cointegration test shows that the two equations are cointegrated. The results from the study show that increasing the number of bank branches; the number of account holders; savings; credit to private sector and improvement in the level of financial knowledge with respect to financial services deepen financial integration of the West African Monetary Zone. The policy implication of the paper is that each economy's monetary authority and financial service providers must continue to advocate and institutionalise programmes that will deepen access to and knowledge of financial services, this will improve the extent of financial integration.