Cryptocurrency in Malta : an exploration of its diffusion

Abstract

The theme under study is cryptocurrency and its growth in Malta. The study applies theories of diffusion of innovation to explore the process that cryptocurrency has taken and the circumstances that have affected its growth locally using the Innovation-Decision Making Process [IDMP] and the Technology Acceptance Model [TAM]. A qualitative exploratory approach has been adopted and semi-structured interviews were used to explore the perceptions of active stakeholders from the traditional financial services and cryptocurrency exchanges registered in Malta. Enshrouded by controversy since its inception, the diffusion of cryptocurrency has encountered some significant setbacks. The quality of the knowledge available, price volatility, association with illicit activity, issues of legal recognition, regulation and control are discussed by the interviewees as the major inhibitors of cryptocurrency’s mass adoption. Efforts to enhance the prospects of growth are twofold; firstly, through legislative and regulatory measures and secondly by reshaping the innovation to make it more attractive to potential adopters. Acknowledging the volatility of the subject, this study does not draw generalisations but depicts how the situation is at the moment of the exploration. The researcher brings together the dominant stakeholders’ perceptions and organises them in a way that simplifies the understanding of a process in the making, hoping that it would serve as groundwork for future studies in this area.