Evaluation of Mobile Banking Adoption Among Small and Medium Enterprise Owners in Kano State, North West Nigeria

Mobile banking has emerged as a transformative financial technology with significant implications for small and medium enterprise performance in Nigeria, yet adoption rates among SME owners in North West states such as Kano remain below their potential. This study evaluates the adoption patterns and determinants of mobile banking use among SME owners in Kano State. A descriptive survey was applied to 280 SME owners selected through purposive and snowball sampling from three major markets in Kano Metropolis. A structured questionnaire assessed mobile banking adoption status, frequency of use, transaction types, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, trust in mobile security, and awareness of available mobile banking features. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were computed using SPSS. Literature from North West Nigeria consistently identifies distrust of digital financial platforms, poor literacy in mobile interface navigation, and transaction failure experiences as the dominant adoption barriers among this population. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology provides the theoretical reference framework. Findings indicate that SME owners who received formal or informal mobile banking orientation training showed 58 percent higher adoption rates than untrained peers. The study recommends bank-sponsored financial literacy workshops, simplified mobile banking application interfaces in Hausa language, and targeted awareness campaigns through market association networks in Kano State. Keywords: mobile banking, SME adoption, Kano State, UTAUT, financial technology.