Blockchain technology in banking and finance (Working Paper)

The proposed research aims to examine the factors influencing the adoption of blockchain technology in banking and finance, with a specific focus on the context of Bangladesh. The study will investigate the perceived ease of use, perceived ease of usefulness, and user intention toward the use of blockchain technology in the banking and finance sector. Data will be collected through a web survey, and the Smart PLS program will be utilized for data analysis. The expected results suggest that perceived ease of use, perceived ease of usefulness, and user intention will significantly impact the adoption of blockchain technology in banking and finance. The policy implications of this research are that relevant stakeholders in the banking and finance sector will be able to identify the factors that influence the adoption of blockchain technology and take necessary actions to facilitate its adoption.

Contributors: Hasibul Islam, Junaid Rahman, Tipon Tanchangya

Impact of firms’ size, leverage, and net profit margin on firms’ profitability (Published)

The study investigated the factors that influence the return on assets (ROA) of manufacturing firms in Bangladesh. The study relied on secondary data sourced from the audited annual reports of 15 leading manufacturing firms in Bangladesh, covering a period of ten years from 2013 to 2022. The sample firms were selected based on their listing on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE)-30 and Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE)-30 indices and their status as leading firms in the manufacturing sector using the purposeful sampling method. The study employed the one-step generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator to analyze the data, addressing the presence of endogeneity and heteroskedasticity. The results of the study indicated that the natural logarithms of net profit margin (NPM) and total sales (TS) have a significant positive relationship with ROA, while the natural logarithm of total assets (TA) has a significant negative relationship with ROA. However, the study did not find any significant relationship between the leverage ratio (D RATIO) and ROA. The lagged value of the dependent variable (L) was also found to be insignificant. The study's findings suggest that firms can enhance their ROA by improving their profitability and increasing their sales while avoiding excessive growth in their asset base. Additionally, larger firms may face diseconomies of scale that reduce their profitability. However, the lack of a significant relationship between leverage and ROA is somewhat surprising, and further research is needed to better understand the relationship between leverage and ROA in different contexts. Overall, the study utilized a rigorous data collection approach to ensure the reliability and validity of the data used for analysis, providing accurate results that can be relied upon for making informed decisions.

Contributors: Hasibul Islam, Junaid Rahman, Tipon Tanchangy, Mohammad Aminul Islam

Publisher: Cem IŞIK

Journal: Journal of Ekonomi

Link of the paper: https://doi.org/10.58251/ekonomi.1275742

Mobile Financial Service (Under Review)

Our research project is titled "Exploring the Relationships between Perception, Purpose of Use, Technical Challenges, and Satisfaction towards Mobile Financial Services: A PLS-SEM Analysis." The objective of our study was to investigate the factors that influence customer satisfaction and intention to use mobile financial services (MFS) in Bangladesh. To collect data, we utilized a structured web survey, and we employed Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to analyze the data and evaluate the measurement model's reliability and validity. Our findings indicate that customers' perceptions and satisfaction have a significant impact on their intention to use MFS. Specifically, customers' perceptions strongly influence their satisfaction with MFS, and the purpose of use is a significant predictor of both perception and satisfaction. Although technical problems and challenges do not significantly impact satisfaction levels, other factors are more critical. Our study suggests that MFS providers should focus on enhancing customers' perceptions and satisfaction with MFS to increase the likelihood of continued usage and customer loyalty.

Contributors: Hasibul Islam, Junaid Rahman, Tipon Tanchangya, Mahmuda Binte Masud, Tasfiqure Amin Apon