Title: Role of comparative economic benefits on intention to use e-wallet: the case in Malaysia

Authors: Siti Aisah Bohari; Ruzita Abdul-Rahim; Aini Aman

Addresses: Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (The National University of Malaysia), UKM Bangi, 43600, Selangor, Malaysia ' Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (The National University of Malaysia), UKM Bangi, 43600, Selangor, Malaysia ' Faculty of Economics and Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (The National University of Malaysia), UKM Bangi, 43600, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract: Two years into Malaysia's digital economy transformation plan, consumers' reliance on cash remains intact despite the tremendous responses on the supply side. This study aims to identify proactive measures that can help promote and accelerate mobile payment adoption by examining the antecedents of consumers' intention to use e-wallets at three stages: static, interaction, and transaction. The regression results from 1,147 consumers reveal that differentiating e-wallet usage into three functional services yields valuable insight. The UTAUT constructs are significant when explaining transactional functions, but only performance expectancy and social influence matter for static and interaction functions. Overall, comparative economic value (CEV) is more prevalent than UTAUT in explaining consumers' intention to use e-wallets, while the role of perceived trust is inconclusive. The results suggest that policymakers should improve the regulations and legislation to enhance consumers' trust to induce more e-wallet subscriptions and expedite the country's transformation into a cashless economy.

Keywords: comparative economic benefits; e-wallets; Malaysia; technology adoption; trust; UTAUT; comparative economic value; CEV.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEF.2022.126476

International Journal of Electronic Finance, 2022 Vol.11 No.4, pp.364 - 382

Accepted: 13 May 2022
Published online: 26 Oct 2022 *

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