IMPACT OF ELECTRONIC BANKING ON SMALL MEDIUM ENTERPRISES PERFORMANCE IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1 1.BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The exponential growth of electronic technologies has led to a variety of transformations in the way individual business organisations and governments operate their companies 24 hours a day. Electronic banking has actually made business transactions less inconvenient, non-cash, and unhindered by space and geography. The adoption of E banking by Nigerian banks has further facilitated transactions to be made and received on-line without the need for physical touch, stress or communication between persons anywhere and at any time. E banking, which is structured to conduct a business involving small and medium-sized enterprises and other payments electronically, will greatly increase the number, scope and protection of small medium-sized enterprises in Nigeria. This new development would greatly benefit business people, particularly small and medium-sized companies, to grow their businesses locally and internationally.

Across Nigeria at all stages of development, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a crucial role to play in achieving sustainable growth and development goals, fostering inclusive and sustainable economic growth, providing jobs and decent work for all, facilitating rapid industrialisation, enhancing productivity, creating values and growing income inequality (OECD, 2017). Sustainable economic development is real poverty elimination for emerging sub-Saharan African nations like Nigeria. Thus, because of the high level of poverty and versatility of small medium-sized enterprises relative to other ventures, the interest in small medium-sized enterprises in African developing countries such as Nigeria should be increased. In Nigeria today, a developing nation with approximately 200 million people and over 65 per cent of its population under 35 years of age (SMEDAN/NBS MSME Survey, 2013), it has become imperative for policy makers to pursue the general growth of the national economy through small medium-sized enterprises rather than relying on the oil sector. This shift in Nigeria’s economic policy course is not limited to the depleting condition of the oil reserve, but is also due to the abundant potential; the availability of land, cheap labor, etc. by small medium-sized enterprises. Although the shift in economic and government policies in favor of small medium-sized enterprises has seen a substantial increase in the number of small medium-sized enterprises available, the contribution of this sector to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been very low. The education, wholesale/trade and manufacturing sectors with the highest distribution of small medium-sized enterprises do not account for up to 50% of the independent contribution to Nigeria’s national GDP (SMEDAN/NBS MSME Survey, 2013). This low contribution rate to Nigeria’s national GDP could be due to lack of access to adequate finance, multiple taxes, poor market access and obsolete technology, which have had an effect on the ease of doing business in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEDAN/NBS MSME Survey, 2013). Inability of Small Medium Enterprises to have access to sufficient information communication technology (ICT) is seen as a major challenge for Small Medium Enterprises to develop strong operations and grow their businesses in the environment (Dutta & Mia, 2011).

Electronic banking can be seen as the integrated, effective and efficient delivery of modern and conventional banking services through electronic and communicative networks. This involves systems that people use for accessing accounts, transacting companies and collecting information across networks including the Internet. These networks may be either private or public. Electronic banking is therefore a general term that defines the entire method of carrying out such transactions without the need to physically visit the financial institution Amyx, C. [2016]. Electronic banking (E-banking) is the umbrella term for the mechanism through which the consumer can make banking transactions electronically without visiting a brick and mortar branch. Delivery of modern and conventional banking products and services directly to customers via the electronic, interactive contact platform Amyx, C. [2016]. Electronic banking is also defined as business services that use information and communication technology, including an integrated circuit (IC), a card, a cryptography and a telecommunications network (steven 2012).

The success of small and medium-sized enterprises can be seen as the manner in which a company or a corporation gives value to its stakeholders, such as owners, consumers, society and even the government. It also reveals how well the management handles the firm’s capital. As part of the empiric analysis, most of the studies looked at the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises at the microeconomic (organizational level, the relationship between the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises and their internal environmental factors, or a combination of internal and external factors. While these studies may be useful to entrepreneurs in their efforts to find the most effective ways to boost organizational efficiency in the context of scarce resources, they do not substantially help to understand the basic mechanisms and determinants of the performance of the small and medium-sized enterprises sector in one country or another as a whole.

Banks are one of the first and biggest facilitators of the use of internet technologies (Taiwo 2014). As the market leaders through which e-commerce has been developed, they apply e-banking technology to e-banking services such as online transfer, e-billing and the opening of deposit accounts to customers (OKEKE 2017). Electronic transactions are inevitable for smooth transactions by small and medium-sized enterprises in modern Nigeria, since they enable small medium-sized enterprises to perform. Transaction is a method of doing business; that is, purchasing and selling goods and paying. E-transaction is a transaction that is carried out over the Internet, including e-banking e-ordering, online publishing or online retailing. Electronic transfers are financial trades, communications and online payments without a physical transfer of cash between the parties involved in the transactions. E Banking is any transaction made with the aid of computer or electronic gadgets connected to an Internet facility to facilitate financial exchange and information to influence economic activities.

These services are provided by various initiatives such as telephone banking, mobile banking, Online payment systems and Internet banking (Kurnia, Peng & Liu, 2010). E-banking will enhance process excellence, speed of delivery and value of service to customers, which is important for supporting small and medium-sized business transactions and efficiency in general. Since the success of e-banking services depends on the pace at which the technology is adopted by consumers, including small and medium-sized enterprises, the question is how the adoption of e-banking networks by Small Medium Enterprises has affected the output of small and medium-sized enterprises in Nigeria.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Electronic banking is projected to have an effect on the operations and efficiency of small and medium-sized businesses in the context of transactional ease, time saving, instant transaction warning and cost savings (Aliyu, 2012). Despite the acclaimed advantages of electronic banking, problems of internet bribery and fraud, unavailability of financial resources, payment of secret costs of electronic banking such as Short Message Services (SMS) for sending notifications, non-acceptability of Nigerian cards for foreign transactions, malfunctioning of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), lack of technological information about how to use these electives. In the light of these complaints and in order to expand the knowledge base on e-banking in Nigeria, the purpose of this study is to demonstrate the effect of e-banking on the success of small medium-sized enterprises in Nigeria.

1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main aim of the study is to examine the impact of E banking on small and medium enterprises performance in Nigeria. Specific objectives of the study are:

1) To assess the level of Small Medium Enterprise performance in Nigeria

2) To determine the factors that influences the adoption of e banking by Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria

3) To examine the impact of E-banking on Small Medium Enterprise performance in Nigeria

4) To examine the relationship between E-banking and Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria

5) To examine the challenges to the implementation of E-banking in the Small Medium Enterprise Sector

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1) What is the level of Small Medium Enterprise performance in Nigeria?

2) What are the factors that influence the adoption of e banking by Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria?

3) What is the impact of E-banking on Small Medium Enterprise performance in Nigeria?

4) What is the relationship between E-banking and Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria?

5) What are the challenges to the implementation of E-banking in the Small Medium Enterprise Sector?

1.5 HYPOTHESIS OF THE STUDY

HYPOTHESIS

HO: There is no significant impact of E-banking on the performance of Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria

H1: There is a significant impact of E-banking on the performance of Small Medium Enterprise in Nigeria

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study would enable the researcher to pass their experience on the subject matter to government Ministries, SMES, schools which includes students and lecturers to serve as a medium for further research.

1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The general scope of this study covers impact of E banking on small and medium enterprises in Nigeria

1.8 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE: mall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are non-subsidiary, independent firms which employ fewer than a given number of employees. This number varies across countries.Small firms are generally those with fewer than 50 employees, while micro-enterprises have at most 10, or in some cases 5, workers. Small and medium-sized enterprises or small and medium-sized businesses are businesses whose personnel numbers fall below certain limits. The abbreviation “SME” is used by international organizations such as the World Bank, the European Union, the United Nations and the World Trade Organization

E banking: Online banking, also known as internet banking or web banking, is an electronic payment system that enables customers of a bank or other financial institution to conduct a range of financial transactions through the financial institution’s website.

SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE PERFORMANCE: SMEs’ performance can be understood from a quantitative perspective: efficiency, financial results, level of production, and number of customers. Identification of factors influencing the performance of small medium enterprises (SMEs).