From Traditional to Digital: Understanding Individual Zakat Payers’ Intention to Use Digital Zakat Payments Platform in Malaysia

The rapid advancement of digital technology has transformed the way zakat payments are collected and managed, leading to the emergence of digital zakat payment platforms in Muslim-majority countries, including Malaysia. Despite the increasing availability of these platforms, their utilisation remains limited, resulting in suboptimal zakat collection. Furthermore, limited comparative evidence exists on the factors influencing individuals’ intentions to use digital zakat payment platforms across national contexts. This study aims to examine the determinants of intention to use digital zakat payment platforms among individual zakat payers in Malaysia by employing an extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) framework. Data were collected through an online questionnaire distributed to salaried individual zakat payers in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, Malaysia. The findings reveal that two factors, namely zakat literacy and social influence, emerge as significant determinants of the intention to use digital zakat payment platforms. These findings provide practical insights for zakat institutions and policymakers to develop targeted strategies to enhance adoption of digital zakat payments, especially for individual zakat payers.

Zakat; Digital Zakat; Behavioural Intention; Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT)

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