Digital Payments – How New Technologies Disrupt Money Transfer Systems in Africa
Digital Payments – How New Technologies Disrupt Money Transfer Systems in Africa

Author(s): Kenzie K. Ferguson, Michael Neubert
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Economy
Published by: Vysoká škola ekonomická v Praze
Keywords: Digital payments; fintech; Africa; innovation; finance
Summary/Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative exploratory multiple case study research is to exploresubject-matter experts’ (SMEs) perceptions of how technology and framework conditionsinfluence and impact the success of digital payment business models in sub-Saharan Africa. Toaddress this purpose, and to be consistent with the qualitative paradigm, a multiple case studymethodology is used to collect data from multiple sources of evidence. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses an open-ended survey to collect data onSMEs perceptions. Data collection happened through semi-structured, qualitative, in-depthinterviews with senior managers and entrepreneurs / owners in the financial technology sector.Data collection took place in Paris in November 2018. The interviews took between 32-46minutes. The answers of the SMEs were imported, coded, and analyzed using NVivo for Mac. Findings: The findings suggest that growth of digital payment systems in sub-Saharan Africamight be driven by network effects and incentives, and a reduction Gourville’s endowmenteffect or status quo bias. The results of this study suggest that infrastructure might key to thesuccess of digital payment services and supportive regulation might be necessary to allow forentrepreneurs to drive innovation and to protect their customers against fraud. Research/practical implications: The FinTech environment is changing rapidly and requiresreview of the changes within the ecosystem of financial technology innovations. This study willhelp FinTech innovators, academics, and policymakers to understand how technology andframework conditions impact payment business models in sub-Saharan Africa. Originality/value: This paper builds on FinTech research and takes a more in-depth look atdigital payment systems in sub-Saharan Africa using Gourville’s (2006) theoretical frameworkon the psychology of new-product adoption. The added value of this study might be suggestionsfor quantitative research and recommendations for providers of digital payment systems insub-Saharan Africa.

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