The Impact of Mobile Payments on the Success and Growth of Micro-Business: The Case of M-Pesa in Kenya

Abstract

Micro-business enterprises in the developing world are increasingly deploying the use of mobile payments to enhance the quality of their services and increase growth. The pace of transformation in the micro business sector has speeded up with more micro businesses realizing the potential of using the mobile payments in their service delivery. However, there are only a handful of studies on the application of digital technology for success and growth on micro business.This paper aims to investigate the success factors attributable to the use of mobile payments by micro-business operators. The study is based on a survey conducted through administration of questionnaires. The data was collected from a sample of 409 micro business entrepreneurs in Nairobi, Kenya.  The study applies the Theory of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) which was extended to include other factors to help us predict success and growth in micro-businesses. Analyses of the data reveal that convenience of the money transfer technology plus its accessibility, cost, support and security factors are related to behavioral intention to use and actual usage of the mobile payment services by the micro businesses to enhance their success and growth.Keywords: Mobile payment, M-Pesa, micro business, technology acceptance, business success.