Impact Evaluation of Strategies to Increase the Uptake of Digital Payments by Micro and Small Merchants in Pakistan

Last registered on December 05, 2023
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Impact Evaluation of Strategies to Increase the Uptake of Digital Payments by Micro and Small Merchants in Pakistan
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0012165
Initial registration date
October 25, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
November 01, 2023, 2:52 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
December 05, 2023, 1:50 AM EST

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Primary Investigator

Name
Farah Said
Affiliation
Lahore University of Management Sciences
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Kashif Malik
PI Affiliation
Lahore University of Management Sciences
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Philip Roessler
PI Affiliation
College of William and Mary
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Russell Toth
PI Affiliation
University of Sydney
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Tiffany Tsai
PI Affiliation
National University of Singapore
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2023-09-17
End date
2025-09-30
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance, Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
financial inclusion, fast payment systems, QR codes, Pakistan, technology adoption
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This research aims to study if information or incentives increase adoption and use of QR-enabled digital payments among a sample of new and existing merchants. The study involves a randomized controlled trial to test if information and financial incentives can increase the uptake of QR codes for person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Malik, Kashif et al. 2023. "Impact Evaluation of Strategies to Increase the Uptake of Digital Payments by Micro and Small Merchants in Pakistan." AEA RCT Registry. December 05. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.12165-2.0
Sponsors & Partners

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We will test three interventions. One, we will test if take-up is influenced by information on the advantages of QR payments and the methods of implementing it. Two, we will test if merchant take-up can be incentivised by financial incentives to the merchant. Third, we will test if motivating take-up requires financial incentives to both the merchant and their customer.
Intervention Start Date
2023-11-01
Intervention End Date
2023-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Take-up of QR payment methods, as measured from admin data on unique QR transactions received per month by a merchant.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
More detail to be posted in PAP.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The experiment will be conducted in dense urban markets and consists of merchants being allocated to three intervention groups or a control group. Treatments will be implemented for 2-3 months. We will collect administrative data on QR use by the merchants during this period and conduct a baseline and endline surveys to collect data on merchant behavior and preferences.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization will be done by a computer.
Randomization Unit
We will define geographical units that correspond to markets or shopping clusters.
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
We expect 50 clusters across 3 cities. The exact number of clusters will be finalized once the baseline data, which will include information on the shop location, has been collected.
Sample size: planned number of observations
800 merchants.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
We will create stratas defined by the geographic markets and number of merchants surveyed in the cluster. We anticipate an equal number of markets allocated to each of the treatment groups and the control group. The exact number will be finalized after the baseline data collection is complete.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
More detail to be posted in PAP.
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Institutional Review Board, Lahore University of Management Sciences
IRB Approval Date
2023-10-02
IRB Approval Number
LUMS-IRB/1002023/KZM-00030383
Analysis Plan

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information