| dc.description.abstract | The Kenyan government has been implementing policies to expand financial access
including promoting mobile enabled financial services to those excluded by formal
banking sector. Despite the efforts, 65 percent of Kenyans have no access to a bank
account due to limited bank branches in rural areas and information asymmetry about
the sector. To facilitate financial inclusion and reach out to rural areas historically
marginalized by convectional banking, mobile network operators have made huge
investment to create network and ease access to money. While invention of Mobile
money offers financial alternative, small scale businesses in rural areas have not seized
the opportunity due to lack of collateral, lack of regular income and inability to
maintain a formal account. In light of this, the study focused on utilization of mobile
financial services among small scale businesses in rural areas. Specifically, the study
sought to, examining the level of utilization of Mobile financial services and investigate
determinants of mobile financial services utilization among small scale businesses in
Kiambu County. Primary data was obtained through interview administered
questionnaire from 123 small scale businesses in Kiambu County. Descriptive statistics
and the logit model were utilized in the analysis .The study found out that businesses
that utilized mobile financial services were 48.8 percent while those that did not use
Mobile financial services were 51.2 percent. Some of the utilized mobile financial
services included; mobile money in phone, Pay bill, till number and mobile money bank
account. Majority of the businesses preferred mobile money in phone transactions at 65
percent compared to other modes of mobile financial service transactions. The logit
regression analysis indicated that; size of business, age of business, distance to bank,
transport cost, business type and sex of business owner were significant determinants of
mobile financial service utilization by small scale businesses. However, number of
employees, level of education, pressure to use mobile enabled financial services and
non-business income were not significant factors in determining use of mobile financial
services. The study concluded that mobile financial services are compliments of other
financial sectors and a means of extending financial services to the unbanked. This
study recommends, infrastructure development by the government to facilitate
movement in rural areas and to encourage financial service providers to penetrate with
ease, provision of an encouraging environment for business to thrive and improvement
of mobile financial services by the mobile network operators. | en_US |
