Consumer Trust and Adoption of Digital Payment Systems in Emerging Markets

Abstract Background Digital payment systems have already become the key to transforming financial services in emerging markets, but their usage remains highly dependent on user trust, perceptions of usefulness and convenience, and the availability of favourable conditions. Objectives This research sought to investigate how consumer trust and adoption of digital payment platforms depend on variables, drawing on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), and a multidimensional trust theory. Methods/Approach A quantitative survey of 500 respondents across four emerging-market regions was conducted. The relationship among performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and the three trust dimensions was analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM). Results Performance expectancy, facilitating conditions, and trust-related constructs proved to be strong predictors of behavioural intention to use digital payments, and actual system utilisation was strongly predictable by behavioural intention. Trust was identified as mediating the users’ technological perceptions and their intentions to adopt. Qualitative implications revealed issues of security, data privacy, and infrastructural inconsistency that continued to influence user reluctance and perceptions of risk. Conclusions The results highlight the roles of trust-building mechanisms, effective user support systems, and regulatory assurance in promoting digital financial inclusion in emerging markets.