article · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Small and medium-sized enterprises in emerging economies often face institutional barriers that hinder blockchain adoption. An empirical survey of 306 Moroccan enterprises across 12 regions assessed the factors influencing their intention to adopt blockchain technology. Perceived complexity, operational cost, and risk significantly discourage firms from adopting blockchain. Conversely, compatibility with existing systems, opportunities for trialability, financial slack, and trust in regulations significantly increase adoption intentions. The visibility of successful blockchain use alone does not encourage adoption unless supported by high regulatory trust. These results reveal that classic innovation diffusion mechanisms depend heavily on the institutional context. Strengthening regulatory trust, establishing practical experimentation platforms, and enhancing digital capabilities are essential to converting perceived technology benefits into actual business adoption in emerging markets.
Understanding the barriers to blockchain uptake is vital for emerging economies seeking digital transformation. The findings demonstrate that promoting technology awareness is insufficient if businesses lack confidence in the surrounding legal and regulatory frameworks. By showing how institutional trust and trial opportunities unlock adoption, the study helps policymakers and development organisations design targeted support programmes to build enterprise digital capabilities.
The research provides market intelligence for software developers, enterprise service providers, and business support programmes targeting small and medium-sized businesses in emerging economies. By pinpointing trialability and cost as critical factors, it indicates that technology vendors need to offer low-risk pilot trials and seamless integration paths. As an empirical study of firm intentions rather than a product deployment, the findings are applied to market-entry and policy strategy rather than direct technology commercialisation.
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Abstract Despite the transformative potential of blockchain for SMEs, empirical adoption remains limited in emerging-market economies, where institutional uncertainty may constrain the translation of perceived innovation attributes into adoption decisions. This study examines the technological, organizational, and environmental determinants of blockchain adoption intention among Moroccan SMEs and investigates whether institutional conditions shape the effectiveness of classical innovation-diffusion mechanisms. Drawing on Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory and complemented by the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework, we surveyed 306 SMEs across Morocco's 12 regions. Using multi-item measures and a maximum-likelihood Ordered Probit model with marginal effects, the study finds that perceived complexity, cost, and risk significantly reduce adoption intention, whereas compatibility, trialability, financial slack, and regulatory trust increase it. In contrast, observability is not significantly associated with adoption intention. An exploratory interaction analysis, however, indicates that the relationship between observability and adoption becomes positive when regulatory trust is high. These findings suggest that the effects of DOI attributes may be institutionally contingent rather than universal: visibility of successful innovation does not necessarily translate into adoption when firms lack confidence in the institutional environment surrounding the technology. The study therefore extends blockchain adoption research by positioning institutional conditions as a potential boundary condition of DOI mechanisms and provides policy implications for strengthening regulatory trust, experimentation opportunities, and SME digital capabilities in Morocco. JEL Codes: O33, O55, L26, M15
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DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.22226057
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