Mobile Payment Gateway Adoption and Risk Concerns in South Africa

Author(s):

Euphemia Godspower-Akpomiemie¹ Nchochoba Kenneth Nkemele²

euphemia.godspowerakpomiemie@wits.ac.za
2025-12-03 14:51:10

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Abstract

The growing reliance on digital systems for everyday financial transactions has accelerated the adoption of mobile payment gateways in South Africa. Although these platforms offer convenience and efficiency, they also introduce significant cybersecurity and privacy risks. This study examines the determinants of user adoption of mobile payment gateway systems and assesses how perceived risk influences user behaviour. The research integrates constructs from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) to analyse adoption dynamics. Data were collected through an online survey administered via Qualtrics XM, yielding 268 valid responses. Descriptive statistics, reliability and validity tests, and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to assess the measurement model and identify key influencing factors. The results show that perceived ease of use and perceived trust (which strongly loaded as factors that determine mobile gateway adoption, also with a mean score of approximately 4.5 and 3.5, respectively) significantly enhance adoption intentions. However, perceived risk exhibits a neutral influence among South African users, with mean score of 3.103, indicating that most participants were neither particularly worried nor concerned about the risks associated with mobile payment gateway systems. This neutrality is likely associated with strong regulatory oversight and the relative stabil ity of the South African financial system. The findings underscore the importance of maintaining user trust and strengthening cybersecurity awareness to sustain growth in mobile payment adoption.

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