Cashless Economy: The Behavior of Using E-payment in Thailand

Abstract

This research article aims to study the behavior of using e-payment in Thailand, examining the financial factors of: 1) stepping into Thailand's cashless society, 2) people's perceptions of a cashless society, and 3) financial forecasting. In the research, Part 1 results indicate that Thailand is experiencing a growing behavior of using e-payment due to the continuous growth of payment channels through various payment systems and channels. According to the period from 2010 to 2021, a significant leap forward in this regard has been witnessed.  Thus, Thailand is likely to transition from a cash-based society to a cashless society. This situation agrees with research by Thomas et al. [1]. In the current research, Part 2 results describe a study of 2,800 respondents from 2015 to 2019 and the effects of this behavior of using e-payments. Exchange and payment all come from consumer decision-making behavior. Since financial technology, or Fintech, is now part of the direction of the development of a cashless society in Thailand, the adoption and use of technology is, therefore, an important factor. The important internal factors include Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Social Influence, etc., which are consistent with and related to the behavior of using e-payment.  From this research, it was concluded that the factors related to the transformation towards the behavior of e-payment in Thailand are the following: 1) personal factors, i.e. gender, age; 2) factors affecting decision-making; 3) factors of acceptance and use; and 4) technology adoption, all of which are factors that correlate with e-payment behavior.