Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate customers’ attitudes and intentions toward internet banking in an underdeveloped banking sector. Design/methodology/approach The study was carried out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A sample of 215 respondents comprised of 112 non-users and 103 users of internet banking was selected in the city of Bukavu following a convenience sampling method and structural equation modeling was applied to test the research hypotheses. Findings The results show that for users of internet banking their attitudes are determined by their perceived usefulness while for non-users they are determined by their perceived usefulness and internet trust. For users of internet banking, their intentions to continue using internet banking are determined by attitudes and perceived usefulness; while for internet banking non-users, their intention to use internet banking is determined by their attitudes, their perceived web security and perceived usefulness. Originality/value Few research on internet banking have been done in central and sub-Saharan Africa. The present study gives new insights to assist financial institutions and researchers in understanding intentions and attitudes toward internet banking in an underdeveloped financial sector.

This research studies customer loyalty in the banking sector in a very unstable region of East Democratic Republic of Congo by underlining the mediating role of customer satisfaction. It examines the relationship between perceived service quality, trust, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in the banking sector of Bukavu by adopting quantitative cross-sectional research design and using self-administered questionnaires. Convenience sampling helps in collecting data from a sample of 225 respondents. Correlation and hierarchical regression help to test the research hypotheses. Customers perceive a relatively high quality of services they enjoy, their level of trust is relatively high and they are slightly satisfied. Consequently, they are moderately loyal to their respective banks. There are positive and significant relationships between the different couples of variables studied. There is 49.1% of variance explained in customer loyalty. Customer satisfaction positively and fully mediates perceived service quality and customer loyalty relationship and partially mediates trust and customer loyalty. Regular talks between banks and their customers should be privileged; customer satisfaction and loyalty should regularly be assessed and ethical values integrated.

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