Developing a Model of the Strategic Value of Blockchain Technology in the FinTech and Financial Services Ecosystem
Keywords:
Blockchain, FinTech, strategic value, financial services, interpretive structural modeling, MICMAC analysis, partial least squares structural equation modeling.Abstract
This study aimed to identify the dimensions and components, structure the causal and hierarchical relationships, and validate a model of the strategic value of blockchain technology within the FinTech and financial services ecosystem. An exploratory–confirmatory mixed-methods design involving qualitative, structural, and quantitative phases was employed. In the qualitative phase, 20 experts in blockchain, FinTech, and financial services were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling, and semi-structured interviews continued until theoretical saturation. The data were analyzed using the six-phase thematic analysis procedure in MAXQDA. Interpretive structural modeling and MICMAC analysis were subsequently applied to determine the direction, precedence, hierarchical levels, driving power, and dependence of the overarching themes. In the quantitative phase, a researcher-developed questionnaire was administered to 384 employees of banking and financial businesses after its face, content, convergent, and discriminant validity and internal reliability had been established. The quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS and partial least squares structural equation modeling in SmartPLS. Interpretive structural modeling demonstrated that blockchain value-creation requirements and blockchain governance, policymaking, and foresight constituted the foundational and highly influential drivers of the model. Blockchain technological features and infrastructure were positioned at the subsequent level, whereas FinTech capabilities and innovations and blockchain–FinTech interaction and synergy occupied the intermediate levels. Strategic value dimensions and blockchain-related competitive and financial outcomes were located at the final level. The PLS-SEM results confirmed the statistical significance of the principal structural relationships and indicated an acceptable explanatory capacity for the endogenous constructs. All constructs demonstrated adequate internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha and composite reliability values exceeding 0.70. Average variance extracted values were above 0.50, supporting convergent validity, while the Fornell–Larcker criterion confirmed discriminant validity. The strategic value of blockchain does not arise solely from technological deployment; rather, it results from the coordinated interaction of technological infrastructure, FinTech capabilities, organizational and human readiness, regulatory frameworks, and interorganizational governance. Achieving sustainable financial and competitive outcomes therefore requires a phased, ecosystem-based, and institutionally coordinated implementation approach.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Hamid Roshan (Author); Baitullah Akbari Moghadam; Akbar AlemTabriz (Author)
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