Assessing the Relevance of Green Banking Practice on Bank Loyalty: The Mediating Effect of Green Image and Bank Trust

Abstract

Studies that examine green banking practice from the relationship marketing perspective are limited. Bearing in mind the importance of loyalty to managers in the banking industry, and the increase in the call for greater sustainability performance from banking firms by customers, our study explore customers’ perception on green banking practice and its effect on bank loyalty. It also investigates the mediating effect of green image and bank trust in the relationship between green banking practice and bank loyalty. Through a quantitative survey, data for this study was adopted from 551 customers of the retail banking sector in North Cyprus. The structural equation modeling technique was used to test the relationship between the study variables. Results from the structural equation modeling analysis conducted indicated a direct and significant influence of green banking practice on green image, bank trust, and bank loyalty. Green image significantly affects bank trust and bank loyalty. No significant relationship exist between bank trust and bank loyalty. Green image mediates the relationship between green banking practice and bank loyalty, while bank trust does not mediate the relationship between green banking practice and bank loyalty.