Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the Requirement for the MSc in Finance FINANCE DISSERTATION ON THE IMPACT OF GREEN BANKING INITIATIVES ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN VIETNAM DINH THI MAI CHI ID No: 22080913 Intake 6 Supervisor: Dr Roberto Ercole September 2023 1 I am Dinh Thi Mai Chi, a master's student in UWE 6B, UWE 6 course. I declare that my master's thesis "The Impact of Green Banking Initiatives on Customer Satisfaction" is a research work of my own. The data and tables serving the analysis and guidance of this topic are collected from various sources and are noted in the reference section or notes right below the tables. In addition, for interpretive documents to further clarify the points analyzed and cited in the appendix, the data origin is also annotated.
Signature of Student Signature of Supervisor 2 Table of Contents ABTRACT:. 6 Green banking concept and its importance:. 6 Customer satisfaction in the banking sector. 10 Previous Studies on Green Banking and Customer Satisfaction.
18 Data and sample collection methods. 18 Econometric Models for Customer Satisfaction:. Empirical findings and discussion. 23 Descriptive statistics and tests.
28 Discussion of Findings. Conclusion and Recommendation:. Error! Bookmark not defined. 3 ABTRACT: With the trend of greening industries, the banking industry has also begun racing to introduce green banking initiatives to satisfy customer satisfaction.
This study aims to understand the impact of applying green banking initiatives on customer satisfaction because, in any industry, customers play a very important role, in influencing customer success. This research has shown that the characteristics of green banking initiative adoption include: ease of use, customers' environmental and social concerns, and security features, features that create value. Data is collected by any customer who has ever used banking services, applicable to any bank in Vietnam. 243 response samples were collected.
The method applied will be survey research for data collection, and quantitative and qualitative for analysis – also known as mixed methods. Multiple regression analysis method is used for analysis, accompanied by correlation tests and collinearity tests. The results show that security and trust features, environmental and social concern features, and value creation features have a positive impact on customer satisfaction. This study also provides recommendations to help bank leadership take action to sustainably develop stable green banking applications in Vietnam.
Introduction According to Marc Lallanilla (2020), the green movement began in the 1800s with transcendentalism to honor the natural world devastated by the industrial revolution at that time. Throughout history, environmental protection has always been of social concern and exists in many different forms. Today, the green movement is spreading to major industries around the world. With the concept of “green living”, industries are focusing on the goal of acting environmentally friendly, creating positive returns for the economy in achieving environmental sustainability as well as a sustainable economy.
Finance is a large sector in the economy, including many other small sectors, and banking is one of the sectors within finance. In fact, traditional banking transaction methods require many steps and paperwork, which poses many environmental risks and opens up new demand for green banking initiatives. Thanks to that, the idea of green banking has spread not only around the world but also in Vietnam. According to Julia T.
(2020), Green banking is an environmentally friendly source of finance. That is, bank services on environmental welfare and promoting environmental friendliness are considered green banks. Banks act as intermediaries in the economy because they influence the flow of money (Berger & Udell, 2001). With its extremely important role, each bank can contribute to creating a better global environment by taking "green" steps (Thombre, 2015).
Besides, Lindgreen (2006) also mentioned that in a highly competitive globalized environment, building better relationships with customers is important for businesses. Vietnam, like many other countries, is moving towards sustainable development and is interested in aspects of green banking initiatives. There are quite a few essays published on this topic. This research focuses mainly on the impact of green banking on customer satisfaction because the success of applying green banking initiatives to businesses in Vietnam is determined by many factor, one of which is the level of its influence such as the level of customer satisfaction with that business.
The main objective of the study is to understand how different features of green banking initiatives impact regional customer satisfaction with the scope of application to all banks in Vietnam. In this study, the above issue will be investigated based on the characteristics of green banking initiatives, including security and reliability features, ease of use features, and environmental and societal, value creation characteristics and their impact when applying green banking initiatives on customer satisfaction in Vietnam. In addition, several proposals will be made to develop this initiative in the future.1 Green banking concept and its importance: After the 2008 global financial crisis, most countries around the world have re-evaluated their organization and operating models in their financial systems, including the banking system. Since its inception, the concept of green banking has attracted many researchers around the world to learn and develop.
Green banking has emerged as an ideal model for future banking, a foundation for moving towards a green economy and sustainable development. There are many definitions of green banking, but according to Julia & Kassim (2020), the definition given by the German Development Institute is considered a recognized definition—“Green finance includes financing (including preparation and capital costs) green investment, public policy and green financial system.” According to CGC(2012) (Green Capital Alliance) - a non-profit organization with a mission to prevent climate change in the United States, Green Banks are organizations based on the mission of using innovation finance to speed up the conversion process, to clean energy and fight climate change. A bank is considered "green" when it meets both conditions: providing green services in the short term and having a long-term business strategy that meets environmental and social responsibility criteria. Green banking initiatives have become extremely important in our lives.
The devastating effects of natural disasters, environmental disasters, and the recent sudden changes in temperature experienced by many people around the world have forced people to start thinking about global warming and its consequences. The transition to clean energy and combating climate change will reduce pollution. According to Ravi Meena (2013), Green Bank benefits include avoiding paperwork, creating awareness among business people about the environment, and making loans at relatively lower interest rates. Previous studies have suggested that when banks apply green banking initiatives, there will be no paper or less paper required for office correspondence, audits, and reports.
Many NGOs and environmentalists are propagating environmental consciousness among the general public by arranging consumer awareness programs. Besides, banks can also introduce green banking loans with financial incentives for environmentally friendly products and projects such as fuel-efficient vehicles, green building projects, home loans, and home furnishing to install clean energy systems (Ravi Meena, 2013). In particular, the banking industry is a growing industry in the world. According to BCG(2021), in 2021, there are about 256 digital banks in the world, up 4 times compared to 2018.
More and more banks applying green banking initiatives will help a lot not only for the environment but also for 6 the environment of itself. Specifically, according to Ajaz and Aijaz (2022), the application of green banking initiatives will reduce operating costs due to less use of stationery, energy, and water; Increase employee productivity and efficiency through skilled and optimal use of technology, and reach customers faster when using technology in service. According to Gary (2022), Green Bank encourages banks to invest in sustainable, low-carbon business practices that generate long-term returns and attract eco-conscious investors. Jain and Jain (2023) discuss that another important aspect of green banking is the 'Green Taxonomy' which provides a category/dictionary to accurately define what can be termed as environmentally sustainable investments.
Green taxonomy enables companies and investors to make better and more informed choices. However, the authors also emphasize that green banking is similar to a traditional bank because it examines all social, environmental, and ecological concerns with the goal of protecting and conserving, natural resources and the environment. As such, the main objective of this banking concept is to improve the conservation of the earth's environment, habitats, and resources. Green banking is also an innovative and forward-thinking approach to achieving long-term sustainability.
It is important for banks to be proactive to increase the growth rate of the economy. Due to the ever-changing environmental conditions, banks face stiff competition in the global market. However, it should also be noted that failure to invest and reduce fossil energy can reduce capital flows into fossil fuel companies, eventually leading to the destruction of this industry, and affecting the world's economy. World experience in green banking activities: The overview of world research on successful green banking models is divided into two main groups: green banking models in developed countries and green banking models in developing countries.
According to US EPA (2022), in the United States green banks can be managed by the following entities: - Local or state agencies typically use legislative bodies and public or private funding to establish green banks, although a variety of funding sources and structures may be used. - Non-profit organizations can be established as green banks. This process typically does away with the legal requirements and authorizations needed to establish a green bank as a government agency. 7 Some examples of green banks in the United States are the Connecticut Green Bank, DC Green Bank, and Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority.
In a study of the potential role of green banks in the state of California, Juhnke C., et al (2012) evaluated the potential impact of a Green Bank on energy efficiency and distributed systems, based on 6 criteria: number of additional projects funded; bank's cost efficiency; Additional benefits provided by the bank; the bank's management feasibility; ease of integration with existing government programs, and political feasibility. Thereby, research has proven that Green Bank's presence has helped increase the flow of effective, competitive capital costs, thereby helping the state achieve its clean energy goals and helping alleviate many current problems causing trouble for this market. One of the examples worth learning about green banking initiatives is in India. According to Dipika (2015), India is currently implementing more products and services of the Green Banking initiative such as: - Green loan: means lending to a project or business that is considered environmentally sustainable.
- Green mortgage: refers to a type of mortgage that offers you a money-saving discount or larger loan amount than normally allowed as a reward for improving energy efficiency or for purchasing a home that meets specific energy-saving standards. - Green credit cards: Whether in the form of eco-friendly rewards, using biodegradable credit card materials, or promoting paperless banking, credit cards are going green. - Green Savings Account: In the case of Green Savings Accounts, banks donate on the basis of customers' savings. The more they save, the more the environment benefits in the form of contributions or donations made by the bank.
- Mobile banking and online banking: These new-age forms of banking include less paperwork, less correspondence, and fewer trips to branch offices for banking customers, all with a positive impact on the environment. In his research, Ahuja (2015) also pointed out that India, there are many opportunities that it can exploit and aim for economic development. Strict steps are needed if we really want to practice Green Banking. But before that it is necessary to increase consumer awareness.
Green banking not only means using resources sustainably but also applying green lending principles. The literature review undertaken shows that what is lacking in the context of Green Banking implementation is 8 the level of consumer awareness and education. Therefore, appropriate training and education programs by banks for green initiatives will truly bring success to Green Banks. China is the world's 2nd largest economy.