A scale development study on the use of cryptocurrencies in foreign trade transactions: An application for foreign trade companies

Revolutionized blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies continue to be rapidly adopted globally. Cryptocurrencies enable anonymous, secure, fast and low-cost financial transactions without the need for third parties. Although cryptocurrencies began to gain more widespread acceptance worldwide in the 2020s, their use remains limited relative to the general population. The purpose of this study is to determine the attitudes of foreign trade firms toward the use of cryptocurrencies and to develop a valid and reliable measurement tool adapted from the Technology Acceptance Model developed by Davis (1989) for cryptocurrency use. For this purpose, the general survey design which is one of the quantitative research methods was used. The sample of the study consists of 729 participants selected by stratified sampling method from the management, finance, import, export, accounting, and sales-marketing departments of foreign trade firms operating in the Aegean Region. Data were collected through online surveys using a data collection tool developed by the researcher. SPSS and AMOS software were used for data analysis. Skewness and kurtosis values, along with standardized z-scores, were examined to test the normality of the data distribution. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to shape the structures related to the scale. Since the condition of normal data distribution was met in hypothesis testing, parametric tests such as ANOVA, t-test, Pearson correlation, simple and multiple linear regression analyses were used. The interpretation of the findings was made according to a 95% confidence interval. According to the findings of the study, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed a model consisting of 4 structure and 27 items. These structures are Positive Financial Attitude, Ease of Use, Perceived Risk, and Intention to Use. The Cronbach's alpha value for scale was found to be 0.96, indicating a high level of reliability. The goodness of fit for the research model was good in terms of CMIN/df, SRMR, PNFI, and PCFI indices, and acceptable in terms of RMSEA, CFI, NFI, NNFI (TLI), and IFI indices. The values of composite reliability, average variance extracted, maximum shared variance, and average shared variance demonstrated that the structural model is valid and reliable. According to the results of the structural model, Perceived Risk negatively and slightly affects Ease of Use, Ease of Use positively and moderately affects Positive Financial Attitude, and Positive Financial Attitude positively and highly affects Intention to Use (p<0.001). Descriptive statistics indicated that the average scores for Ease of Use, Positive Financial Attitude, Intention to Use, and Perceived Risk were 5.05±1.83, 4.10±1.74, 4.06±2.24, and 2.25±1.35, respectively. Overall, the attitudes towards cryptocurrency use were found to be neutral. Attitudes towards cryptocurrency use was significantly different based on department, age, gender, education level, income level, and marital status (p<0.05). Discussions on the structure of the research model, goodness of fit, and key hypotheses were provided, along with suggestions for future research.