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The first objective of this study is to analyze whether financial behavior (FB), financial stress (FS), financial literacy (FINLIT) and the locus of control (LOC) influence subjective financial well-being (SFWB) among low-income households in Malaysia. The second objective is to investigate whether the use of digital financial services (DFS) moderates the influence of FB and FS, on SFWB.

Motivated by the literature on transformative service research (TRS), this study examines how the use of DFS impact SFWB among low-income households in Malaysia. Low-income households are chosen as they are more likely to be financially excluded and lack financial knowledge and skills. Using an interviewer-administered survey, trained enumerators collected data from 1,948 low-income households in Malaysia, selected using a two-stage sampling based on the National Household Sampling Frame obtained from the Department of Statistics Malaysia.

Results reveal that SFWB is positively influenced by FB and the LOC, and is negatively impacted by FS and FINLIT. The evidence shows that the use of DFS counterintuitively weakened the strength of the relationship between FB and SFWB, but effectively reduced the adverse effect of FS on SFWB.

To reverse the signs of relationship, financial services marketers need to identify the specific types of DFS that low-income households use in order to provide targeted marketing efforts and financial education to promote the use of DFS on a more holistic basis to increase financial well-being.

The findings of this study add to the body of knowledge deliberating on the opposing effects of technology on consumers' welfare and well-being. This study focuses on the lower-income stratum of Malaysian households as this group of the population is more likely to be financially excluded and have deficiencies in financial knowledge and skills. Findings of this study show that DFS use can actually diminish the positive impact of FB on SFWB while reducing the adverse effect of FS on SFWB.

This study investigates the borrowing behaviour of public sector employees in Malaysia by focusing on religious belief and psychological factors. The first objective of the study is to examine the differences in the borrowing behaviour according to demographic and socioeconomic factors of the civil servants. The second objective of the study is to investigate the influence of religious belief, excessive consumption, materialism and financial literacy towards two aspects of borrowing behaviour: personal loans and credit card usage.

Primary data was collected using a digital survey which was distributed using a convenience sampling approach to public sector employees working in Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A sample of 340 public sector employees was obtained for analysis.

The study found that civil servants of different education backgrounds and income levels tend to differ in their borrowing behaviour. Specifically, those with lower levels of education, or lower income levels, tend to have a higher tendency of borrowing through personal loans. Multiple regression analyses reveal that public sector employees with either higher religious belief or higher financial literacy have a lower tendency of borrowing either through credit cards or personal loans. However, those who spend excessively or those who have higher levels of materialism tend to display more aggressive borrowing behaviour in terms of credit card usage and personal loans.

The study contributes to the literature by exploring the role of religious belief on borrowing behaviour. In addition, the study contributes to the literature by examining a specific group in the Malaysian society, i.e. public sector employees, due to the perturbing state of indebtedness among civil servants in Malaysia.

This study aims to explore the underlying issues of behavioural biases in relation to stock market participation and the challenges of individual investors in Bangladesh. The study identifies behavioural biases affecting individuals’ stock market participation, their circumvention strategies and the importance of financial knowledge in encouraging the participation of individuals in the stock market.

Semi-structured interviews were used in this study to gather information from industry researchers, individual investors, brokers and institutional advisors. Twenty-two experts were contacted, and 13 agreed to participate in the interviews. The study then uses the thematic analysis method to report its findings.

This research shows that investors’ behavioural biases (such as loss aversion, herding, trust, gambler’s fallacy and risk tolerance) are among Bangladesh’s primary drivers of stock market participation. Circumvention strategies (such as poor corporate governance and agency costs) also play a part in individuals’ participation. These influences are in addition to the obvious factors of investment risks, poor infrastructure, poor regulation enforcement and the need for more sufficient investment products.

This study conducted 13 interviews with expert subjects, which is a small sample size. However, the findings achieved saturation and cannot be ignored. Future research should use quantitative or experimental methods with a large sample size to validate the current findings.

This study is pioneering in the Bangladesh stock market, exploring the behavioural biases of investors’ participation in the market. This paper provides valuable insights into investor participation by discovering the underlying behavioural biases that have been continually ignored; these insights may also be relevant in frontier markets in Asian countries.

This study is an exploratory study investigating firm-specific internal factors that influence the profitability performance of selected life insurance firms in eight Asian countries (China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Malaysia) from 2008-2014. This paper aims to focus on internal rather than external factors based on the resource-based view suggesting that the internal resources of a firm are key to gaining competitive advantage.

The authors used panel data estimation model to test our six hypotheses on these eight selected countries for the period between 2008 and 2014.

A random effect model reveals that size, volume of capital and underwriting risk are significantly related to the profitability of Asian life insurance firm, measured as return on assets. Premium growth, asset tangibility and liquidity are insignificant predictors of the profitability performance of these life insurance firms.

Three implications of this study are that life insurance firms need to proactively tap new business opportunities by attracting younger generation customers via e-marketing technologies; secure larger capital base to finance their market expansion strategies; and focus on intangible resources such as goodwill, brand equity and reputation.

This study contributes to the literature by conducting an exploratory regional-based panel study of Asian life insurance firms to find common factors that contribute towards profitability. The study is conducted on a collective sample of Asian life insurance firms based on the premise that the firms included in the sample engage in cross-border activities and share the same international financial reporting standards. These commonalities allow us to treat the firms jointly in a somewhat similar Asian macroeconomic environment.

Using the integrated behavioural model (IBM) as a theoretical framework, this study aims to identify the determinants of saving behaviour among Malaysia's income-earning Generation Y (Gen Y) born in the years 1980–1995.

The study was conducted using a questionnaire survey targeting Gen Y respondents 500 sets of responses were obtained via convenience sampling method.

Analysis conducted using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) revealed that there were positive relationships among instrumental attitude, injunctive norm, perceived control, self-efficacy and intention to save. Secondly, intention to save, financial literacy and time preference were found to positively influence saving behaviour.

Policymakers may find this study useful as the results reveal saving behaviour determinants of Gen Ys in Malaysia, and policies could then be formulated to improve Gen Y's saving behaviour.

This study contributes to the literature by applying the IBM to a study on saving behaviour.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-05-2023-0340

The term “Shariah compliance” states that a firm conducts business activities within the boundaries stipulated by Islamic law. The purpose of this study is to empirically examine whether a firm’s Shariah compliance helps in reducing firm-specific stock price crash risk (SPCR).

Using the data of 10,391 firm-year observations of non-financial public listed firms in Malaysia from 2001–2017, this study uses the panel data estimation technique for regression analysis. Moreover, a series of alternative estimations has been applied to check the consistency of results.

The findings reveal a significant negative impact of firms’ Shariah compliance on SPCR. The results indicate that Shariah-compliant (SC) firms are less likely to hoard bad news, ultimately reducing SPCR. The results also unveil a possible mechanism through which SC firms reduce SPCR. The findings reveal that SC firms are less likely to be involved in earnings management, which reduces the risk of a stock price crash in SC firms. It highlights the behavioral differences in financial reporting between SC firms and Shariah non-compliant (SNC) firms.

This research adds to the existing literature of Islamic capital markets from the perceptive of SPCR. The SPCR exhibits a tail risk of the stocks and is very important for risk management and investment decisions. The findings of this study will help risk-averse investors to include SC firms in their investment portfolios for risk minimization. The results also guide policymakers and regulatory bodies to rethink the monitoring mechanisms of publicly listed firms.

This study is unique, as it highlights that firms’ Shariah compliance reduces SPCR.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationship between stock price volatility (SPV) and dividend policy of industrial products firms listed on Bursa Malaysia.

The sample comprises 166 industrial products public-listed firms covering a time span from year 2003 to 2012. Using Baskin’s framework, firm’s SPV is related to dividend payout, controlling for earnings volatility, firm size, leverage and growth of assets. Further, the impact of the global financial crisis on the relationship between SPV and the tested variables is examined.

Earning volatility significantly explains SPV of industrial product firms during the crisis period, while dividend payout ratio (PR) predominantly influences volatility during pre- and post-crisis sub-periods. The empirical results indicate that dividend policy is a strong predictor of SPV of industrial products firms in Malaysia, particularly during the post-crisis period.

The paper explores the firm’s SPV and dividend policy for a new set of data focussing on industrial products firms listed on the Malaysian Stock Exchange.

This paper aims to examine the relationship between Islamic religiosity and Islamic financial asset holdings (IFAH) among Muslim individuals in Malaysia.

Data for this study were collected through a survey questionnaire, and a sample of 751 working Muslims in Kuala Lumpur was obtained. Islamic religiosity was measured via religiosity levels and religiosity dimensions. IFAH was measured as the fraction of Islamic financial assets held in a financial portfolio. A generalized linear model (GLM) was used to estimate the relationships.

The results show that religiosity level influences the IFAH. Devout Muslims held more Islamic financial assets than casual Muslims. All religiosity dimensions influenced IFAH, with faith having the greatest influence and virtues the least. Educational level strongly influenced IFAH.

The sample consisted of working Muslims in Kuala Lumpur; hence, generalization cannot be made to all Malaysian Muslims. This study only focused on Islamic financial assets and did not consider other types of Islamic financial products, such as financing.

Efforts to encourage Muslims to opt for Islamic financial assets may be more effective if they begin from the core of religious education. Educating individuals on Islamic principles, including the values and concepts of Islamic finance, is important to encourage the Islamic banking industry to prosper among Muslims.

The paper provides an extension of current literature on spirituality and religion by incorporating a comprehensive measure of Islamic religiosity and its relationship with financial asset holdings.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the level of understanding of Islamic banking concepts and the factors that influence Islamic banking adoption in Malaysia, based on Rogers’ (1983; 2003) Diffusion of Innovation. Specifically, the impact of perceived attributes and other variables (understanding, consumer innovativeness and bank personnel’s professionalism) on Islamic banking adoption is examined.

A quantitative approach using a sample of 200 working MBA students in a leading public university in Malaysia was used. The instrument used was a self-administered questionnaire survey.

The level of understanding of various Islamic banking concepts is below average. A logistic regression reveals that the understanding of Islamic banking concepts and perceived advantage significantly influences the adoption of Islamic banking services.

The small sample size of 200 individuals may render the findings ungeneralizable. Future studies may use a larger sample from across Malaysia and incorporate other independent variables, such as religiosity and Islamic financial literacy.

The Malaysian government can provide tax incentives and conduct educational roadshows on Islamic banking. Educating prospective consumers on the advantages of Islamic banking as opposed to conventional banking would provide more objective benefits that would boost the adoption of Islamic banking.

The results of this paper will be useful for Islamic financial institutions to increase their marketing and promotional efforts to keep pace with stiff competition within the industry.

The purpose of this study is to examine changes in firms’ level of information asymmetry in emerging market of Malaysia for the period of 2000-2016. Specifically, the study focuses on changes in the quoted spread and quoted depth following the fraud announcement.

The study uses a unique set of fraud sample using enforcement action releases (EARs) identified from the Security Commission of Malaysia and Bursa Malaysia. To estimate the result, the authors use event study methodology, OLS regression and simultaneous model on a set of 67 fraudulent firms.

The results of event study, OLS regression and simultaneous equation models suggest that information asymmetry increases on fraud discovery. The authors also use the analysis on subsamples classified by the type of regulator (who issued the enforcement release) and type of fraud committed. However, the authors find no evidence of a difference in information asymmetry across these groups. Overall, the results support the reputational view of fraud that it damages the firms’ reputation and increases uncertainty in the capital market.

These findings provide valuable insights into understanding the information asymmetry around fraud announcements, especially for Malaysia, where the majority of the public-listed companies are family-controlled and under significant state control. The results of this study call for the active role that regulators can play to achieve a transparent and liquid capital market.

The research has practical implications. Specifically, for Malaysia, fraud is the primary area for National Results Areas (NKRA) in the Government Transformation Program (GTP). Therefore, for regulators and policymakers to ensure a liquid and transparent capital market, identifying the factors that elicit the fraudulent behavior and improving the related governance mechanism are necessary steps to prevent the fraudulent practices.

Due to increased information asymmetry on fraud announcements, the demand for equity decreases that may affect not only the fraudulent firms but also results in negative externality for non-fraudulent firms, thus impairing their ability to fund equity.

A significant majority of studies have focused on corporate frauds in developed countries such as the USA that is characterized by dispersed ownership system and a strong capital market. One of the vocal critics of the agency theory is that it neglects the social and institutional framework within which companies operate. In emerging markets, such as Malaysia, the published academic papers on fraud and information asymmetry are very limited. As emerging markets practice different cultures, corporate governance mechanisms and market regulations, the study is significant to investigate the behavior of investors in such markets.