Toward Sustainable Financial Behavior: The Role of Financial Socialization and FinTech in Enhancing Green Financial Literacy

This study examines how financial literacy and financial socialization influence green financial literacy through the mediating role of FinTech usage within a sustainability-oriented framework. Green financial literacy is treated as a proxy for sustainable financial behavior rather than a direct behavioral measure. Based on financial socialization theory, the study proposes an integrated model linking individual competencies, social learning processes, and digital financial technologies. Data were collected from 539 individuals using a structured questionnaire and analyzed with structural equation modeling (SEM) employing a robust weighted least squares estimator. The findings show that financial literacy (β = 0.76, p < 0.001) and financial socialization (β = 0.23, p < 0.001) significantly increase FinTech usage. While financial literacy does not directly affect green financial literacy (β = −0.13, p > 0.05), FinTech usage has a strong positive impact (β = 0.88, p < 0.001), indicating a full mediation effect. Bootstrapping results further confirm the robustness of the mediation effects. Financial socialization also has a direct positive effect (β = 0.20, p < 0.01). The results suggest that financial knowledge alone is insufficient to support sustainability-oriented financial awareness unless it is supported by digital financial technologies. The study highlights the key role of FinTech in facilitating the integration of financial knowledge and social learning into sustainability-oriented financial awareness and decision-making and offers practical implications for promoting sustainable finance.