Digital Literacy and Post-Adoption FinTech Usage Intensity: Evidence from Rural Consumers in Karnataka, India

Abstract

New potential to achieving financial inclusion in developing countries have arisen as a result of the rapid digitization of financial services, which has accelerated the deployment of FinTech solutions. However, there is still a significant gap in the post-adoption behavior of digital financial services, and this is particularly true in rural areas where digital skills discrepancies are more pronounced. Although earlier studies have mainly focused on investigating the determinants of FinTech adoption, little has been done to uncover the factors that influence persistence of and intensive use. This study aims to address that knowledge vacuum by investigating the relationship between digital literacy and the intensity of post-adoption FinTech application use among rural customers in the Indian state of Karnataka. A quantitative study design was adopted by conducting a cross-sectional survey of 400 rural FinTech users that were sampled using structured sampling method. Digital literacy was conceptualized as a multidimensional concept that entails technical digital skills, digital financial skills, information processing ability, and cybersecurity awareness. The hypothesized correlations were tested via descriptive statistics and multiple regression. With technical digital skills and digital financial knowledge revealing as the most relevant factors, the empirical findings demonstrate that digital literacy has a beneficial impact on the size of FinTech usage. Results show that digital skill development boosts digital financial inclusion in rural regions and encourages the adoption of FinTech products.