Digital payment adoption and its role in promoting financial inclusion in the context of SDG 8

QR code-based digital payments are now a critical advancement in the international financial system, and have been particularly important given that the COVID-19 pandemic has driven rapid acceptance of contactless technology around the world. For this purpose, the authors performed a Systematic Literature Review (SLR), adhering to PRISMA guidelines for identifying trends, determinants, and research methods in Digital Payment adoption. We searched the Scopus database with keywords “Digital Payment”, “QRIS”, and “QR Payment” which generated 54 articles, and then filtered them into 15 relevant articles. The findings of the analysis demonstrated that more than half (61.5%) of all studies relied on quantitative methods using theoretical frameworks, including TAM, UTAUT, and PMT. Key drivers of adoption are perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, trust, and social influence. These results validate the contribution of digital financial services to financial inclusion, economic growth, and sustainability – with these outcomes directly aligned to SDG 8, SDG 10, and SDG 16. The other issues are digital financial literacy, security issues, and technology-access divide. It is recommended that further research should look at cross-cultural methodologies, hybrid methods, and the use of new technologies e.g., AI and blockchain, in building an inclusive digital payments ecosystem future-fit for sustainable growth.