The intention of religious leaders to use Islamic banking services: the case of Indonesia

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to ascertain the factors that influence the use of Islamic banking (IB) services by religious leaders in Indonesia using the theory of reasoned action. Customers of sharia banks consist of Muslims and other religions. Based on this fact, this paper analyzes the influence of attitude (ATT), community influence (CI), religious obligation (RO) and subjective norms (SN) to predict the intentions of religious leaders in using IB services in Indonesia. Design/methodology/approach Data were randomly obtained from 119 religious’ leaders with the structural equation modeling technique used for analysis. Findings The empirical analysis data suggest that attitude (ATT) and religious obligations (RO) show a significant impact on the intentions of religious leaders to use IB services, while community influence and subjective norms have a negative impact on the intentions of Indonesian religious leaders in using IB services. Practical implications This study aims to assist Islamic bank managers in Indonesia to formulate appropriate Islamic marketing strategies and policies to increase customer trust through comprehensive socialization to religious communities. The strategy is a necessity, especially because the government is targeting a 10% growth by 2020. Furthermore, bank managers need to develop in-depth insights into their operations to attract religious leaders’ intentions. The fact shows that the stronger the understanding of individual religion, the greater their intention in using IB services. Originality/value Because of the increasing interest in adopting IB in Indonesia, this study claims three essential contributions. Firstly, it aims to examine the intention of religious leaders, namely, Islam, Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism, in assisting IB managers to design a strategy better than conventional banks. Secondly, the study findings are expected to benefit the development of literature in accordance with the economic conditions of certain religions. Thirdly, this study provides an insight into the inclusive attitude of religious leaders and their intention to adopt the economic structure of other religions.