Factors influencing adoption of paperless banking: A case of West Pokot county, Kenya

A remarkable increase in the use of electronic commerce has been witnessed in recent times, research has followed the same pattern especially in investigating factors influencing the adoption and effectiveness of e-commerce in retail businesses. However, little has been done to establish these factors in Paperless Banking in developing countries as compared to the traditional over-the counter service. Statistics obtained on number of over the counter transactions in these banks in the past one month indicated that indeed, over the counter transactions are still preferred by many clients. The question that is raised then is why? The purpose of this research was to establish how technological factors influence service delivery and customer adoption of paperless banking in Kapenguria town West Pokot County. To investigate the extent that social factors limit adoption of paperless banking in Kapenguria town of West Pokot county, To establish the level banking infrastructure and how it influences adoption of paperless banking in Kapenguria town West Pokot County. To establish the effect of geographical barriers on adoption of paperless banking processes in West Pokot County, Kenya. The Theory of Reasoned Action, (TRA) which was developed to better understand relationships between attitudes, intentions and behaviours (Fishbein, 1967) was used in the theoretical framework. This is one of the most important theories that are used to explain human behaviours. The study was conducted using cross-sectional design in which the researcher collected data at one point in a time and analysed it instead of following the target population in order to analyse changes in behaviour over a long period of time. The target population was 500 correspondents drawn from banking customers in three commercial banks in West Pokot County. A sample size of 222 correspondents was used. Data was collected through questionnaires; closed-ended semi structured interviews and cross referenced against supporting records. Data analysis technique was by content analysis method. Data was analysed in chapter four and represented in tables. Summary, conclusions and recommendations were made in chapter five. The study findings showed a great influence of Paperless Banking services on customer service delivery. The study suggests to the banks should give high priority to customer service delivery and consider paperless banking as a key driver towards successful implementation of customer service delivery. Recommendations include the following; Banks to continually and aggressively create awareness to realize benefits of Paperless Banking to both staff and their customers, which in turn improves customer service delivery. To the government, for Electronic transactions, which utilize the PIN, the PIN must be recognized by the Court as being key and crucial to such transaction and there must be a method of upholding its validity in a transaction. This assures users of security while using Paperless Banking services. Also, banks need to regularly carry out customer surveys so as to understand their customer needs and develop Paperless Banking services with customer driven strategies.