ABSTRACT

E-payment system is increasingly becoming a daring means of payments in today’s business world. This is due to its efficiency, convenience and timeliness. It is a payment system that is continuously being embraced and adopted in the financial system of both developed and developing countries with a view to simplify and ease payments in business transactions. This study was carried out to look into the adoption and use of electronic payment systems in Ghana by business owners with e-zwich as case study. This was done with questionnaires to business owners, to identify the forms of electronic payment systems in use by business owners, to identify the factors affecting the choice of payments systems by business owners, to evaluate the challenges involved in the existing payment systems in Ghana and to examine the challenges involved in the adoption and use of the e-zwich payment system using Accra Metropolis as a study area. The adoption and use of the e-zwich was found to be low mainly due to the inadequate availability of point of sale terminals at shopping points among others. These are affecting the perceived ease of use even though the perceived usefulness of electronic payment systems is strongly present among individuals and businesses. The study recommended customer education and widespread deployment of e-zwich point of sale terminals to merchants.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENTS PAGE

DECLARATION i

DEDICATION ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii

ABSTRACT iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS v

LIST OF TABLES viii

LIST OF FIGURES ix

CHAPTER ONE 1

INTRODUCTION 1

1.0 Background of the Study 1

1.1 Problem Statement 3

1.2 Objectives of the Study 4

1.2.1 Main Objective 4

1.2.2 Specific Objectives 4

1.3 Research Questions 5

1.4 Significance of the Study 5

1.5 Scope of the Study 6

1.6 Limitations of the Study 6

1.7 Organisation of the Study 6

CHAPTER TWO 8

LITERATURE REVIEW 8

2.0 Introduction 8

2.1 Definitions of Electronic Payment Systems 8

2.2 Payment Systems in Ghana 9

2.3 E-zwich Payment System 10

2.4 Types of Electronic Payment Systems 11

2.4.1 Debit Card Payments 11

2.4.2 Credit Card Payments 11

2.4.3 Mobile Phone Payments 12

2.4.4 Online Payment Method 12

2.5 Factors Influencing the Choice of Payment Systems 13

2.6 Benefits of Electronic Payments 13

2.7 Challenges of Electronic Payment Systems 15

2.7.1 Security 15

2.7.2 Infrastructure 16

2.7.3 Regulatory and Legal Issues 17

2.7.4 Socio-cultural Challenges 17

2.8 Challenges of Electronic Payment Systems in Ghana 18

2.9 Services offered by the E-zwich Payment Services 20

2.9.1 Transactional Type 20

2.9.2 Merchant Type 21

CHAPTER THREE 23

METHODOLOGY 23

3.0 Introduction 23

3.1 Research Design 23

3.2 Study Area 24

3.3 Population 24

3.4 Sample Size and Sampling Technique 25

3.5 Source of Data 27

3.5.1 Primary Data 27

3.5.2 Secondary Data 27

3.6 Data Collection and Instrument 28

3.7 Administration of Instrument 28

3.8 Data Analysis 29

3.9 Conclusion 29

CHAPTER FOUR 30

DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 30

4.0 Introduction 30

4.1 Socio-Demographic Characteristics of Respondent 30

4.2 Forms of Electronic Payment System 33

4.3 Factors Affecting Customer choice of Payment Systems 34

4.4 Challenges Involved with the Current Cash Payment System 37

4.5 Challenges Involved in the Adoption of E-zwich 39

CHAPTER FIVE 44

SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 44

5.0 Introduction 44

5.1 Summary of Major Findings 44

5.2 Conclusion 45

5.3 Recommendations 46

REFERENCES 49

APPENDIX 54