Οι επιπτώσεις του FinTech στη χρηματοοικονομική βιομηχανία και η εμπειρική διερεύνηση της σχέσης μεταξύ χρηματοοικονομικού αλφαβητισμού και γνώσης για τα κρυπτονομίσματα

Ανδρονής, Σόλων

The impact of FinTech on the financial industry and an empirical investigation of the relationship between financial literacy and cryptocurrency knowledge

Doctoral Thesis

Author

Ανδρονής, Σόλων

Date

2026

Abstract

As technological developments reshape the global financial landscape at an increasingly rapid pace, the starting point for this doctoral dissertation is the observation that the evolution of FinTech, from early forms of technological support for financial transactions to the contemporary ecosystem of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, has fundamentally transformed the way markets are structured, services are delivered, and investment decisions are made. Within this new context, digital markets are characterized by heightened technological complexity, pronounced volatility, and a growing degree of information asymmetry, as market access, information flows, and transaction execution are increasingly mediated through digital platforms and applications. Consequently, in today’s digital financial environment, cryptocurrency knowledge should not be equated with simple technological familiarity, instead, it requires a solid grounding in financial concepts and the ability to evaluate risk within a highly complex digital ecosystem. This is grounded in the view that participation in a complex, innovative, and high-risk investment domain requires an understanding of fundamental financial concepts. In the absence of adequate financial literacy, individuals face difficulties in understanding how cryptoassets work and to assess investment alternatives, associated risks, and their pronounced volatility. Moreover, the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications into FinTech infrastructures and services increases both the speed and complexity of information and available options, thereby raising the demands for informed judgment on the part of users and investors. Against this backdrop, the present dissertation examines the impact of FinTech on the financial industry and, more specifically, empirically investigates the relationship between financial literacy and knowledge about cryptocurrencies. At the theoretical and literature-review level, the dissertation presents the evolution of FinTech, from its early stages (FinTech 1.0) to contemporary forms of digital financial innovation. It further maps how the field has been studied in the international literature, identifies dominant thematic areas and core research directions, highlights remaining research gaps, and discusses regulatory considerations. In addition, it frames the gradual transition toward the ecosystem of blockchain and cryptocurrencies as a contemporary phase of FinTech development. The dissertation also examines financial literacy and cryptocurrency knowledge, determinants of cryptocurrency ownership, the role of financial knowledge and investment experience in crypto-related participation, gender-based differences, and the role of Bitcoin as a technological, investment, and financial phenomenon. This theoretical discussion is complemented by the presentation of the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization and the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, in order to capture the structure, functioning, and dynamics of the contemporary crypto ecosystem. The dissertation’s main scientific contribution lies in its empirical investigation, as it constitutes the first empirical study in Greece to examine the relationship between financial literacy and knowledge about cryptocurrencies. It addresses a clear research gap. While financial literacy has been extensively studied internationally, its empirical linkage with cryptocurrency knowledge remains limited, and even less is known about whether and how this relationship exhibits gender-based differences. To address this gap, and for the first time in Greece, the study draws on primary data from a sample of 221 undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled in economics related university programs and employs an original 42-item questionnaire. The questionnaire includes demographic characteristics, financial literacy questions grounded in the international literature, graded questions measuring cryptocurrency knowledge, as well as items capturing attitudes and perceptions toward the crypto environment. Methodologically, the dissertation develops and estimates 38 empirical models, combining Binary Logit and Ordered Logit regression techniques. A key innovation is that cryptocurrency knowledge is not treated as a single undifferentiated construct, but rather as a scaled and graded process captured through distinct knowledge levels (general awareness, basic, intermediate, advanced, and complete lack of knowledge), as well as through an overall ordered crypto literacy scale reflecting the transition from lower to higher levels of overall knowledge. In addition, as part of the dissertation’s scientific contribution, an interaction term is incorporated to test whether the effect of financial literacy on overall cryptocurrency knowledge differs by gender. This approach enables the analysis to move beyond a purely descriptive comparison between men and women and to examine whether the underlying mechanism linking financial literacy to cryptocurrency knowledge operates with different intensity across genders. The empirical findings demonstrate strong scientific relevance. They indicate that financial literacy is a stable and decisive factor associated with cryptocurrency knowledge. Financially literate individuals exhibit higher odds of possessing specific levels of cryptocurrency knowledge and of being classified into higher levels of overall crypto literacy, while also showing lower odds of complete absence of such knowledge. At the same time, a clear and systematic gender gap emerges, with male students exhibiting higher knowledge levels than female students, and with the positive effect of financial literacy on overall cryptocurrency knowledge proving stronger among men. By contrast, the level of study (undergraduate vs postgraduate) is not consistently established as an independent and statistically significant determinant of crypto knowledge. The findings remain consistent across alternative specifications and model formulations, strengthening the robustness of the conclusions. Overall, the dissertation contributes theoretically, empirically, and methodologically to both the international and Greek literature. Its central contribution lies in systematically bridging financial literacy and cryptocurrency knowledge, demonstrating that understanding cryptocurrencies is not merely a consequence of technological familiarity or exposure to the crypto environment, but presupposes substantial financial education, sound cognitive readiness, and gradual deepening of understanding within a highly complex digital financial ecosystem.

Department

Σχολή Οικονομικών, Επιχειρηματικών και Διεθνών Σπουδών. Τμήμα Οργάνωσης και Διοίκησης Επιχειρήσεων

Number of pages

755

Language

Greek

URI

https://dione.lib.unipi.gr/xmlui/handle/unipi/19642

Collections

Τμήμα Οργάνωσης και Διοίκησης Επιχειρήσεων

Show full item record

Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as
Αναφορά Δημιουργού-Μη Εμπορική Χρήση-Όχι Παράγωγα Έργα 3.0 Ελλάδα