The Impact Of E-Wallets On Digital Finance In Indonesia: Evidence From Google Trends 2020-2024

Abstract

This study examines the influence of e-wallets on the transformation of digital finance in Indonesia by leveraging Google Trends data from 2020 to 2024. Public interest in e-wallets serves as the independent variable, while the transformation of digital finance is proxied by public interest in QRIS (Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard) using the Interest Over Time (IOT) feature. Employing a quantitative explanatory approach, weekly data comprising 262 observations were analysed through Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) simple linear regression. The findings reveal that e-wallets exert a positive and significant effect on QRIS, with a regression coefficient of 0.212 and a significance level of 0.001 (<0.05). However, the R² value is only 0.042, indicating that e-wallets account for merely 4.2% of the variation in QRIS while other factors outside the model drive the remaining 95.8%. This study offers methodological novelty by using Google Trends behavioural big data as an alternative indicator of public attention, providing a real-time perspective beyond conventional transaction reports or surveys. The results imply that while e-wallets function as a catalyst, broader determinants such as online shopping behaviour, the number of QRIS merchants, financial literacy, and regulatory support play a more dominant role in advancing Indonesia’s digital finance transformation, and they suggest that regulators can design more effective QRIS promotion strategies by leveraging the popularity of e-wallets and that industry players can enhance integration and incentives to accelerate adoption.