An Analysis of Customer Switching Internet Banks in Hong Kong

The convenience of banking via the Internet is allowing the growth of multiple banking relationships while maintaining an everyday account with another bank. Denton and Chan (1991) defined this kind of multiple banking as being conducted where people employ two or more bankers to handle their personal financial affairs. Gerrard and Cunningham (1999) indicated that socio-economic characteristics can be used to identify a multiple bank user(s) from a single bank user. According to Dick and Basu (1994), switching costs are a common strategy to maintain the loyalty. Switching costs have been identified as a factor contributing to maintaining a relationship (Morgan and Hunt, 1994). This research would be among the earliest attempt to study the consumer behavior issue in an Internet setting. Based on a review of the literature, a research model linking customer satisfaction, loyalty, switching costs and split Internet bank behavior was developed. The model has two main features. First, it examines the main direct effects of customer satisfaction, loyalty and switching costs on split Internet bank behavior. Second, the model also examines the moderating role of socio-economic characteristics on the relationship between customer satisfaction, loyalty and switching costs split Internet bank behavior.