The use of digital banking platforms and its impact on customer satisfaction: an emperical study in the South African banking sector context.

Abstract

Digital Banking Platforms are always evolving and there’s new products, services and features that are introduced to the market. Digital banking and digital banking platforms have become part of the norm for accessing banking services to many. South African banks are closing physical bank branches and moving services to digital banking platforms thus creating convenience for customers while simultaneously cutting operational costs. While there’s a clear migration to digital banking platforms, there’s still a significant number of customers who use physical bank branches and this may be attributed to numerous factors. Many necessary factors have been highlighted by various models developed by academia and industry, however there aren’t many that accurately explain how digital banking platform usage in the banking sector occurs. This study aims to identify the factors that affect digital banking platform usage and the degree to which customer satisfaction affects digital banking platform usage. Therefore, this exploratory quantitative study examines the applicability of the factors to the banking sector in South Africa. Three hundred and ninety digital banking platform users were sent surveys electronically on Linked-In. There were two hundred and twenty-one responses to which two hundred and two were adequately completed to be used for the analysis. The findings were analysed using the Principal Components Analysis (CPA) to ensure that the data is convergent and distinct. Descriptive analysis and structural equation modelling were used to determine the impact of the various factors on the use of digital baking platforms and the impact on customer satisfaction. A structural fit model was used to determine the model fit. The results to the study indicated that factors influencing the use of digital banking platforms include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, behavioural use, trust and security, service quality and customer satisfaction. The study revealed that a factor with the least influence on the use of digital banking platforms is social influence. The development and testing of the expanded Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model for the use of digital banking platforms and its impact on customer satisfaction in the South African context, constitutes one of the many theoretical contributions. The model takes to account iii factors such as trust and security, service quality and customer satisfaction. The contextual contribution of this study assists the South African banking sector by directing the sector towards the efficient use of digital banking platforms and providing a practical contribution to focus its resources on raising consumer awareness of digital banking platforms, offering features and products that are easy to use. Thus, creating an atmosphere that encourages the usage of digital banking platforms