Unveiling the FinTech revolution: pioneering models and theories shaping FinTech adoption research

FinTech has the potential to transform traditional finance; hence, it becomes crucial to understand various models/theories to analyse the complexities of user behaviour, acceptance factors, and overall adoption patterns. The present study aims to provide an in-depth analysis of research articles on diverse behavioural and acceptance models/theories associated with FinTech adoption and offer an exhaustive list of individual and firm-based factors, frequent adoption stages, and models linked with each model/theory. A systematic review of the literature and bibliometric analysis of 240 studies (2016–2023) indexed in the Scopus and WoS database was performed to establish the trends and evolution of theories and models of FinTech Adoption. Six propositions have been identified through twenty theories/models pertaining to the adoption of various FinTech products/services. The findings reveal that FinTech theories/models (1) have a diverse yet skewed context, (2) widely utilise causal or variance-based models instead of process-based models, (3) encompass a wide range of individual-level adoption factors, (4) emphasise on structured models that dominate over generic theories (5) lack sample diversification and (6) exhibit insufficient assessment of multidimensional variables. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no review, to date, offers a retrospection of the extant literature on the application of twenty prominent models and theories in the field of FinTech adoption research. The findings contribute to the development of guidelines capable of directing academics in effectively constructing a FinTech adoption model in a contemporary context. Further, the study proposes an integrated framework, which provides a one-stop, state-of-the-art overview to enhance FinTech Adoption.