FinTech and Inclusive Finance: Empirical Insights from the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Financial inclusion is pivotal for sustainable economic development, yet billions remain unbanked worldwide. This study investigates how financial technology (FinTech) can enhance financial inclusion in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a high-income country that still has persistent underbanked groups. Drawing on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT), we surveyed 300 UAE residents across all seven emirates to examine FinTech adoption, user trust, accessibility, and challenges. The results show that digital financial tools, especially mobile banking apps and e-wallets, are widely adopted by younger, tech-savvy users and significantly improve access to financial services. Nonetheless, adoption patterns vary across income groups: while lower-income individuals predominantly depend on basic financial services, higher-income users engage more selectively with advanced digital tools. Importantly, this study extends existing adoption models by testing for potential mediating and moderating effects. The analysis demonstrates that perceived inclusiveness of FinTech has a strong and statistically significant direct effect on adoption outcomes. However, neither user challenges (e.g., complexity of apps, security concerns, limited digital literacy) nor financial inequality were found to significantly mediate or moderate this relationship. These results suggest that inclusiveness directly drives adoption, while challenges and inequality though important contextual factors did not alter the adoption pathway in this sample. The UAE’s experience illustrates how supportive regulation, high connectivity, and innovation can foster digital finance; yet it also highlights that without targeted policies addressing financial literacy, trust, and structural inequities, adoption gaps are likely to persist. Policy implications include strengthening financial and digital literacy initiatives, reducing barriers for vulnerable groups, and embedding inclusive design principles in FinTech solutions.

Keywords:

FinTech, Financial Inclusion, Technology Acceptance Model, Innovation Diffusion Theory, UAE.